Under the moon's shadow
by TiLiYu
Summary: Four years after "Unexpected Alliances", the four boys are now beginning their peaceful lives as adults. But with the Volley comet coming soon, the Organization Kaito is facing is more and more aggressive and he needs their help... Will they be able to get out of this fight unscathed? *Sequel*
1. Chapter 1 - Active Life

**Heya !**

 **Time to enter another story : )**

 **So this one is the sequel of "Unexpected Alliances". Some references will be made to the first story so you'd better read it first : )**

 **To introduce this a bit, the story will happen four years later and will be quite more MK-centred, so expect it to flirt a bit with supernatural thingies : ) It'll be manga-based, even for the latest chapters, I just allowed myself a few changes for this story :**

 **\- Spider will be seen as Canon**

 **\- The Volley comet is going to pass pretty soon (so four years after, not 6 months)**

 **\- Hakuba, being born at the end of the summer should have been the youngest... Wells it's always a bit hard to estimate as our heroes are sometimes 16 sometimes 17... I couldn't see him as such so I made him the oldest, born the year before the others (making Heiji the youngest).**

 **\- After all what happened, and the time that passed, I modified the way the boys call each other : it was due to evolve after all they went through together so don't be surprised : )**

 **I'm not really familiar with MK centred fics, so I hope those ideas I had were a bit original and that they haven't been overused before xD**

 **SUMMARY : Four years after "Unexpected Alliances", the four boys are now beginning their peaceful lives as adults. But with the Volley comet coming soon, the Organization Kaito is facing is more and more aggressive and he needs their help... Will they be able to get out of this fight unscathed?**

 **CHARACTERS : Centered on the Gosho Boys of course :D**

 **PAIRINGS : Canon**

 **WARNINGS : T for Violence and languages. Be cautious of spoilers on MK also, I'll be using the latest chapters. This fic will have some pretty dark moments, though they'll only be "moments", but you've been warned.**

* * *

 **Ok, this chapter is to be read as an introduction.**

 **A** **s there's a time gap, there were of course a lot of changes in our boys' life and I had to present it first before going to the action.**

 **So mainly chitchat in there, with a lot of information, sorry if that's perhaps too much but that's needed : )**

 **And I'll be posting a second chapter today so you'll have a bit more action : )**

* * *

 **Chap 1 : Active life**

* * *

The man had a smirk when he opened the door, hearing the faint snoring coming from one of the blue couches in the middle of the room. He came closer, letting the mail he just fetched on small table near the couches, and snorted when he noticed in the faint light that the pillow under the dark-skinned man's head was slightly wet, clearly due to the drool coming from the sleeper's mouth.

Approaching his lips to the other's ear, he suddenly yelled : " O HA YOOO !"

Green eyes snapped open, and a not really happy Osakan rolled down the couch as he jumped with surprise, groaning as his elbow hit the floor first, luckily cushioned by the fluffy carpet.

"- What the… ! " He swore, sitting up with difficulty, nursing his elbow as he looked around, his eyes noticing a certain Tokyoite trying really hard not to burst in laughter, though he didn't manage pretty long to refrain from it and his voice soon echoed in the room.

"- Crap, Shinichi, that's no fun…" He glared at his friend before getting up with a yawn and rubbing his eyes to get rid of the last traces of sleepiness in them.

"- Sorry, Heiji… it was just… " The brown-haired detective answered with a shrug, doing his best to catch his breath as he was holding his ribs. "Oh, well, it's 10 a.m., it's time to get up ! And when will you stop sleeping on that couch ?

\- It's not that uncomfortable… " The Osakan pointed out as he sat on it, flatly looking at his friend opening the curtains, raising a hand to protect his eyes of the sudden light.

"- Your own bed would still be better… When will you solve that stupid quarrel with Kazuha… ? It's been what, a month already ?" Shinichi sighed, turning back to his friend. "Hey, what happened to your face ?!

\- Tss, it's that stupid baldie… " The green-eyed detective grumbled, touching his bruised chin with the tip of his fingers.

"- The one you were supposed to tail ?" The azure-eyed man wondered, heading to the small kitchen to fetch some ice.

"- Yea… He an' his friend started mistreatin' some waitress in that bar, I couldn' stand it… His wife was right, he's sneaky little perv'… I'm glad I could get some good pictures, she'll be able ta get rid o' that guy with that…

\- Still… Work on you discretion, Heiji… Being a detective isn't only about brute force, unless you want to get punched in the face on every case…" He gently scolded, throwing him the ice pack, and crashing in the couch in front of him.

"- Thanks… An' they can hit me, I'll just have ta sue those bastards : one o' the only advantages bein' still underage is that violence on a minor will cost them a lot…

\- … Try to remember it ends beginning of next month…" The Tokyoite concluded with irony after he rolled his eyes in his mind. "Ok, Saguru should be arriving soon, try at least to look presentable…" He advised after a glimpse at his watch.

"- Why that ? No need ta get pampered fer a friend, we've known each other fer long enough ta avoid that…

\- Friend AND associate. We can't have him worry about what we do of his money, with you sleeping until 10 a.m., above all in the office…

\- AND after solvin' a case… Did my share." The Osakan pointed out, putting his ice pack on the table to get up and quickly wash his face in the bathroom's sink.

He looked quite more awake as he came back in the room, just seconds before the bell ran and a smiling Shinichi opened the door on a drenched Hakuba.

"- Ah, look at you, Hakuba- _sensei_ …" He pitied, looking at his fellow detective and his drenched clothes. "Heiji, could you… ?

\- Yea, got that…" The Osakan answered, going back to the room he just left to fetch a towel.

"- Come in, Saguru !

\- Thank you…" The blond-haired man said when the Tokyoite helped him out of his coat. "I'm afraid to state that the weather doesn't change much compared to what I left in England… " He faintly smiled as he settled in one of the couch.

"- It's just you being unlucky, the weather was perfectly fine until yesterday…

\- Here !" Heiji warned as he threw the towel to the half brit, before settling in the couch in front of him and grabbing his ice pack to put it back on his face.

Hakuba nodded a thanks as he catched the towel it and started to dry his hair.

"- So, I believe congratulations are in order?" Shinichi smiled as he sat near Heiji, taking the mails to look through them as they talked.

"- Yup, 'grats, Saguru.

\- Maa, it was a formality, of course…" The brown-eyed detective shrugged, trying to look detached, thought there was a faint blush on his clear skin.

"- Still, being a doctor at 21 is an achievement, when I see you started at 17…

\- Well, I still have to go through two years of internship but these can be done in Japan. Unlike the studying that had to be in England, I preferred to follow what my parents had advised on that specific mater.

\- Ordered ya mean…" The Osakan wanted to precise, perfectly aware of the fact the half brit didn't really have any choice, his parent having forced him to have a "serious" diploma before going back to his investigations, so he'd have a back-up solution if he couldn't make a living from the detective's work.

"- At least, it will have some use for my occupation… And for my co-workers it seems. What happened to you this time ?" Saguru asked, eyeing the bruise taking half Heiji's jaw, luckily a bit hidden by his tanned skin.

"- Long story…" He answered with embarrassment, rubbing the back of his head.

"- Try not to destroy that office's reputation before I even start to work in it, Baito-kun…" The blond-haired observed with a flat look.

"- Hey ! I paid my share, we're all equal here !

\- Well, Saguru's right, as long as you're underage, you can't be an associate…" Shinichi added when he grabbed the next letter with a smirk, knowing that, despite his straight face, the half brit was joking.

"- Stop it… I don' want ta hear that from the true Baito-kun, with that job ya took on the weekends…

\- Just lending a hand to Teitan's soccer team, can't help if they decided to pay me for that !

\- Ah, is it hard to settle down ?" Hakuba observed, wondering if that second job was a need for Kudô to look after his daily bills.

"- Nah, we got some clients thanks ta our reputation as high school detectives but…

\- … It's clearly slower in summer… And it's only been three months since we really started, we had to wait for my 21rst birthday before really opening the place as you weren't in…" Shinichi concluded, remembering that day, May the 4rth, when he walked in the office with Heiji to officially declare the place open for business, with one of his biggest smile, so glad he'd been able to have his own place, with the help of his friends, without using each other's parents' help, just by themselves.

"- I'll be lending you a hand until September, we can think about some way to advertise in the meanwhile…

\- We could ask some advices ta our pro in communication... " Heiji grinned, having a thought about the last of the four boys, Kaito. " Got any news from him by the way ?

\- Not since his wedding in June… But didn't he plan to come back this week ?

\- Do you think they arrested him ?" Shinichi proposed, with a small smirk. "Having a one-month honeymoon in Vegas sounds great but I'm not sure the locals would be absolutely fan of his tricks with playing cards, making them appear and disappear from thin air…"

The two others snickered, imagining some wide-shouldered vigils trying to catch Kaito, to discover he could be as impalpable as thin air if he didn't want to be caught...

"- He was supposed to be reasonable…" The blond-haired man pointed out. "He is, after all, travelling with Aoko-kun, she has the temper to calm him down.

\- Haha, ya sure ? She could be worse than him now she learned most o' his tricks ta assist him in his shows an'… his spectacles o' another kind…

\- Nice way to put it, Heiji… Wow ! "

A rain of confetti covered the three detectives when Shinichi opened the last envelope, having a small cry of surprise when it suddenly popped in his hands once he tore the paper.

"- May I assume he's back ?" Hakuba guessed, rising a curious brow as he saw the Tokyoite was holding a card, so similar to the many he saw into Nakamouri's hands. As the other nodded, he tried to get rid of the multicoloured paper stuck in his hair with a bored look. "Tsk, he'll never grow up...

\- Isn' that part o' his role as the "Kid" ? " The Osakan smirked, more amused by that new trick announcing their friends' was back than annoyed. "So, what's his new target ? ... Shin-i-chi ! " He called after a few moment, seeing his friend was focused on the little card in his hands, waving his hand in front of his eyes.

"- ... Sorry, I was solving the riddle. He'll be targeting the Nezu museum, tonight at 1 a.m. and his goal will be an emerald apparently... Let me check..." The azure-eyed took out his phone and had a quick look on his favourite website for fresh news. "Yes, the Dragon Eye.

\- Ya could have left us some ta solve..." Heiji pouted, disappointed his friend found the answer of the enigma in such a short delay.

"- If you want, I'll let you start first to chase him at the heist..." Kudô proposed with a small smile of apology.

"- It will be the occasion to see if the wedding softened him..." The half brit said with a smirk.

"- Let's work separately then ! We'll see who gets him first... " The dark-skinned concluded with a childish smile, excited at the idea of having an old good contest with his fellow detectives and the Thief.

"- Want to drop home for dinner before the heist, both of you ?" Shinichi proposed, getting up to fetch the vacuum cleaner.

"- Sure, it's been a long time I haven't seen Ran-kun. Is she still studying law ?

\- Yea, it's the summer break right now for her but she's still following her degree. She seems to have made his mind for law counselling studies, you'll be able to talk about that with her tonight. You'll be coming too, Heiji ?

\- Yup, o' course, I'm always up fer a good meal, Ran's quite more skilled fer cookin' than me an' my instant noodles...

\- Take your bag them, you'll stay in the guests' bedroom, it's stupid for you to sleep here when we got enough room for you in the apartment... Got somewhere to crash tonight, Saguru ?

\- Yes, I will be staying at my father's for the moment, time for me to find a hospital for my internship and a place to live by it. Did something happen with Kazuha-kun, Heiji-kun ?" The blond-haired asked, guessing it was the most plausible cause for him to sleep in the office.

The already dark-skinned man's face darkened even more, showing he wasn't really eager to speak about it.

"- Haha, let's say everything hasn't been smooth in Heiji's couple recently...

\- Shinichi…" The Osakan growled with annoyance.

"- Wouldn't it be time for you to grow up a bit ?

\- I don' want ta hear that from ya, Saguru... " He snapped back with a bored glare. "I bet ya're still a single-kun...

\- ... Yes, indeed, between my studies and the few cases I can come across from time to time, my days are already filled enough... Having a girlfriend wasn't an option. But that comment was quite unneeded... "The half-brit observed with a flat look at his friend.

"- … Sorry, last month has been a bit hard fer me…" The Osakan apologized, feeling he had just been lashing some bottled feelings at the blond-haired, when he had nothing to do with it. "Let's stop with that depressin' subject... So ya said ya've been investigatin' a bit ? What kind o' case did ya solve in the UK ?

\- Ah, well, my most famous this year was..."

o.O.o

All the boys around the table were already regretting to have eaten that much when they were supposed to be running after a certain Thief only two hours later but, well, Ran's cooking skills were already excellent before, and four more years only accentuated her talent.

Enjoying the remaining heat of this summer day - despite that rainfall in the morning, the weather had been smiling on them for the evening, they were half dozing on the apartment's small terrace when the bell rang and Ran got up to go at the door.

"- Heiji, it's for you..." She said as she came back and shrugged at the dark-skinned detective's curious expression at her words.

"- ...OK." He said, getting up, not wondering long what it could be about, as there would have been only one reason for someone to ask for him at the Kudôs' door, at that reason had the most beautiful green eyes he had never met, though they were shadowed by a kind of sadness at the moment, as she was waiting for him in the entrance.

"- Kazuha." The Osakan greeted, doing his best to keep a straight face despite the act seeing her triggered a whirl of feelings, where love and regret were the centre.

"- Hi, Heiji.

\- Ran warned ya I was coming ?

\- She invited me for dinner in fact... But I didn't want ta disturb ya so I waited a bit before coming..." The girl felt the need to justify, noticing the indecipherable face of the one, even after their many quarrels, she still loved. Her look fell on his bruised chin, causing a faint concerned frown to appear on her face. "Are ya alright ?

\- Just a scratch, nothing ta worry about..." Heiji answered with a shrug, with a little pinch of guilt when he saw she was worrying at the sight of his slightly blue face. "An' you ?

\- I finally found a job, I'll be giving Aikido lessons for children starting mid-August in a school near our apartment...

\- I'm glad fer ya, it was want ya wanted ta do... So ya'll be stayin' around ? I thought ya may... have wanted ta come back ta Osaka, as ya felt pretty isolated here..." He commented, knowing that the Osakan woman had it hard to leave her beloved hometown, leaving behind her her former life to follow him in his associate detectives' project.

"- It'll be easier with a job. And I've got Ran. And... I didn't give up hope, Heiji..." The green-eyed girl finally admitted, locking hopeful eyes with her detective's. "Ya didn't need ta leave, I want ya by my side... Come back home, Heiji.

\- Didn' we discuss about that already, Kazuha ?" The Osakan reminded her, allowing, for the first time since they started to discuss, a sad expression on his face. "I keep hurting ya, more deeply each time, an' I'm hurtin' myself in the process... We aren' goin' anywhere like this..."

The girl shook her head as she dared to take the dark-skinned man's hand, looking with shining eyes at the scar she did to him, when they almost fell from that cliff four years ago. She knew they'd been hurting each other quite a lot recently but... "But our relationship was so strong…

\- 'was' is perhaps the word, Kazuha..." Heiji pointed out, his voice barely above a whisper.

The Osakan girl raised her head and the detective could see her eyes were turning into that deep green shade she had when she was on the verge of crying. He slightly squeezed her hand, trying to display a soothing smile, once again noticing with bitterness he was hurting her. "Let me think about it then, ok… ?"

Unable to speak, the girl nodded before turning to go out. His heart hurting, Heiji looked at her back when she left the apartment, noticing with a pained smirk they didn't even raise their voice anymore when they quarrelled, regretting the time when they used to yell at each other, when at least, they were being honest with their feelings. With a sigh, he closed the door.

He didn't want to hurt her anymore, and that was the only way he could have thought of, but apparently, seeing how Kazuha was, even one month later, his "great idea" wasn't that great after all. And that was with a heavy sigh he settled once again around the table, barely noticing Shinichi's and Ran's compassionate expressions.

Saguru also felt sorry for the Osakan : they didn't start as the best buddies but their relation improved a lot through the years so seeing him depressed, at the opposite of his usual temper, wasn't something he'd want to see.

Feeling the need to change the subject, he took out his pocket watch, to notice it was late enough to start to head to the heist location.

"- It will be soon time to leave, gentlemen... " He announced with a smile, trying to cheer them up. "Let's try to catch that frivolous mistress of ours to lighten our moods."


	2. Chapter 2 -Illusion

**Aaaaand... action ;)**

* * *

 **Chapter 2 : Illusion**

* * *

"- Ladies, ladies... Looks like that break I took didn't do you any good..." The Thief smirked as he was toying with his newest prey with his fingers, under the two men's glares, both trapped under a cage the museum's owner had set beforehand. "I'm a bit disappointed, Tantei-han , Nakamouri-keibu...

\- Damn thief, just let us out !" The inspector growled, as snappy as ever, squishing his face against the metal to stretch his arm as far as possible, almost touching the emerald.

Heiji and Aoko's father had been the first ones to spot the Thief and had rushed after him, to find themselves stopped by one of the traps laid around in the museum. Quite usual for the inspector, a bit disappointing for the Osakan who was still a bit out of it after his quarrel with Kazuha.

"- Kid ! " He heard Saguru's voice as he came into the room with Kudô on his heels, making him facepalm at the idea his friends would find him in such an embarrassing situation.

"- Ah, Tantei-san, Tantei-kun, long time no see !" Kaito smirked grabbing some invisible cable on his left after he pocketed the emerald. "Sorry for such a short reunion but I have to take my leave with my new friend here... " He falsely deplored, tapping his vest, just where he hid the jewel.

As if he had some jetpack hidden in his cape, he skyrocketed to the glass ceiling thanks to his motorized cable and, with one last wink and one last wave of the hand, he opened a window and left.

"- Let's head to the roof, he will not be able to use this glider, it is too low !" Hakuba pointed out, turning to the hallway leading to the stairs.

"- Ok !

\- Hey, help me out first, Shinichi !

\- Crap..." The azure-eyed detective swore, hesitating to follow the half brit who was already running to the roof, a bit annoyed to be slowed down in this "friendly" contest.

"- Come on...

\- Tsk, you know that, if Saguru wins tonight, he'll remind it to us every day and every night, Heiji..." He observed as he pushed the switch to free both men.

"- This isn't over yet ! " Hattori said as he crawled on the floor to pass under the cage that was slowly raising thanks to Shinichi. "Let's go ! "

o.O.o

Panting as he was finishing his second flight of stairs, Saguru's attention was drawn by some red lights, on the steps just above his head.

 _"_ _What the..."_ He thought, taken by a bad presentment, rushing even more to catch them.

And indeed, his fears concretized as he saw those lights belonged to a helmet reposing on a dark shadow of the shape of a man, when he found himself in the same corridor than him, the one that lead to the roof.

"- Spider ?!" He called, knowing he was in presence of his nemesis.

His call was full of rage and of bottled frustration: that man had succeeded so many times in slipping through his fingers, leaving a trail of corpses behind him... Having to stop the investigation about the assassin was one of the hardest things he had to do when he was half forced to focus on his studies.

"- Oh, you ? " The man said, with a taunting voice, turning to see the young man. "What was your name already ? It's been so long, I can't remember all the useless ones I come across...

\- Hakuba Saguru. Detective." The blond haired answered, tightening his fists to try not to react to the insult, careful of the man's slightest moves, knowing how dangerous he could be.

"- Well, excuse me, _Saguru-chan_ , but I have another prey tonight...

\- Do not think I'll let you escape !

\- Oh, and how do you plan to avoid ... this !"

The half brit, expecting something like that, hid his eyes behind his arm, looking only at the criminal's legs to avoid being hypnotized.

"- Haha, I'd like to know how you'll avoid my needles if you don't look at me, _boy_..." The professional murderer laughed, taking out some of his favourite weapons.

"- Saguru !" Shinichi and Heiji called as they saw their friend rolling on the floor, trying to avoid a needle he couldn't see, his arm still in front of his face.

"- Do not look at him !" He warned, turning to the newcomers. "He is going to..."

But he was already too late, he could see it at the empty eyes of the two other detectives, they were already caught in the man's illusion.

 _"_ _Bloody h..."_

o.O.o

The former pint-sized detective had barely the time to blink : when he opened his eyes again, he was dazzled by a strong light and forced to close them back. Not remembering why he was there, he tried to lift his hand to protect his eyes but noticed with panic both were tied in his back. His heartbeat accelerated as, barely opening his eyelids, he saw his feet were also circled by a plastic link, preventing him to get up, forcing him to stay on the floor, leaning on a wall behind him. But what hit him the most was to see the small length of his legs, almost as if...

"- Ah, finally awake, Edogawa Conan ? "

 _"_ _... As if I was back to a 7 years old body... What just happened ?! And that voice, I know it..."_

"- Or should I say, Kudô Shinichi ?"

Conan froze, both at the mention of his name and at the fact he remembered who owned that voice.

"- Gin." He spitted, squinting to see a black shadow behind the light.

The detective knew there was something wrong with him being small, with him being prisoner of Gin and even with the fact the man standing in front of him but couldn't pinpoint why, the liquid terror flowing in his veins forbidding him to think straight.

The man in black stepped forwards, kneeling to Conan with a mad smile, his left hand playing negligently with a knife, as if he was trying to think about the best part to pierce first to hear some nice cries before killing the small detective.

Conan clenched his teeth, looking at the man in the eyes, not willing to give him the satisfaction to whimper like a child as he felt the cold blade touching gently the skin of his cheek.

"- But before we play together..." Gin said, suddenly getting up while the boy unconsciously sighed. "... I think you should know me killed most of your relatives, the rest should soon follow... But we kept the best for you to see. Vodka !"

Eyes widened by incredulity, the scene he was facing being such an impossibility in his head, the detective saw, as the blond-haired lowered the light, the other man in black, half supporting half holding a long-haired girl, blood trickling along her face and from a corner of her lips, staining the white shirt she wore with scarlet.

Ran.

"- H.. hey..."

Eyes watering as he saw the difficulties the girl had to even pronounce that word, proof of the internal damages she probably suffered, the kid gulped and crossed her look. "Ran..."

Gin was now behind her, raising his blade to position it just near her throat, looking at the small detective with a smirk.

"- I love you, Shinichi..." She sadly said, forcing a gentle smile on her face before the knife moved.

"- RAAAAN !"

o.O.o

"- Shinichi-kun ! Shinichi !"

Saguru had been hesitant, wondering if he should warn Kaito and try to take Spider with just the both of them or wake up his friends to be four against one.

The fact the man could control his friends like puppets finished to convince him he should find a way to get them out of Spider's illusion first, to avoid an attack from behind if they were manipulated in the fight.

But the boys weren't answering his calls : he had started with the Tokyoite, seeing he was staring at nothing, shivering with wide eyes, not reacting to the hands he put on his shoulders, too deep in the nightmare.

Hearing some noise where Heiji was, he turned his head to see the detective just fell on his knees, hyperventilating, looking for air like some fish out of the ocean.

"- Heiji-kun ! Get a grip of yourself ! "

Noticing his calls were as inefficient on him as they were on Shinichi, he gave up on the gentle ways and settled for an old good slap through the face.

The Osakan's eyes at least focused on Hakuba in front of him and he started to pant to catch his breath.

"- What... What the heck was that ?!" He swore, shivering as the last fragments of his nightmare, him letting go of Kazuha that day they fell from that cliff and jumping after her in the river feet below, half drowning himself, faded away.

His face stinging, he brought his hand to his already bruised side, moving his jaw as he felt his pain had worsened.

"- Sorry about that, Heiji-kun, but you weren't waking up..." Saguru apologized, lending him a hand so he could get up.

"- Never mind... If that was the cost ta get out o' this bad dream, I take it..."

The blond haired nodded to the Osakan before doing the same for Shinichi. The boy shook his head when he came back to his senses, staring at his hands once again normal-sized, leaving little doubts for his friends as to what has been his nightmare.

"- Let's go, he is going after Kid, we must stop him ! "The half brit declared, knowing they couldn't idle her anymore, as the criminal was perfectly able to put Kaito in danger with his abilities.

"- What's that guy ? " Shinichi wondered as they all rushed to the staircase going to the roof.

"- His name is Spider, he is an assassin, specialized in hypnosis..." Saguru explained as he opened the roof's door. "Just do not look at him in the eyes !"

o.O.o

Kaito let his arm down with a sigh. Once more, the jewel he exposed to the moonlight kept its dull colour, once more he wasn't holding Pandora in his hands.

After more than four years hunting down the stone, he was starting to wonder if it really existed. The Organization he was fighting was convinced of that fact but what if it was in the bottom of the ocean ? Or destroyed in an accident ? Lost forever ?

He had stolen so many jewels he couldn't even remember half and, even with those trips abroad to search a larger area, the results were still close to none, and the deadline was closer and closer, the Organization more and more desperate to get his hands on it.

The Thief pocketed the emerald and looked at the moon, putting a hand on his hat with a little sign of the head in a kind of respectful salutation to the Friend of the thieves.

That hand finally showed to be the only thing that avoided him to end with a needle in the head, though he couldn't retain a pained cry when he felt it go through his palm.

Turning his look to see where the attack came from, he heard a laugh on his right, a laugh he knew too well, associated to three red lights...

"- Spider !" Kaito recognized, lowering his eyes to look at the man's feet and clumsily getting his card gun out, forced to use it as a left-handed with his damaged right hand.

"- _Kid-chan_... " The criminal greeted, preparing more needles. "You know you won't be able to avoid those if you don't look at me..."

Angry at himself to have been hurt in such an incapacitating way just at the beginning of that fight against quite a formidable opponent, he quickly took refuge behind a corner, after stopping a few needles in midair thanks to well-aimed cards.

"- When will you understand real men need more than toys ?" Spider taunted, heading in some swift moves to the Thief's hideout.

"- I'm a kid, these toys suit me..." Kaito retorted with a childish smile, barely avoiding that other needle the murderer just sent at him.

Another one sent him against the guardrail with a hiss as his wounded hand hit the metal and destabilized him and he sweat-dropped when he tried to stabilize himself, feeling he was in a kind of pinch.

"- The hide and seek is over, Kid... Time to say hi to your predecessor in the other world." The assassin laughed, getting another needle out.

His move was stopped by a soccer ball hitting his wrist at fast speed and Spider turned to see the three detectives were heading to him, the Osakan being quite fast to rush towards him with a menacing glare on the face.

"- Tsk, you won't have your bodyguards around you every time, Kid... No more games next time, we'll play the big leagues..."

And he disappeared in a dark smoke.

"- That damn... " Heiji swore as he used the guardrail to stop himself in his run, his target not being there anymore. " Ya ok ?

\- Yea...

\- Unless ya're into cosplayin' as Wolverine, I'd say ya aren'... " The Osakan deplored, seeing the needle still going out of his hand.

"- Do not remove it." Hakuba ordered as he met them, seeing the Thief was going to get rid of it. "It won't be of any good for you.

\- Hai, mother..." He smirked, getting rolling eyes from the blond-haired. The last detective finally joined them, being a bit delayed as he stopped beforehand to aim at the criminal's hand. "Ah, thanks for that soccer ball, Tantei-kun.

\- Anytime. That old good belt has still its advantages... So, what was that friend of yours ?

\- This is not really the place to speak about that... " Hakuba stated with a dark face. He then turned to Kaito. "I guess that's not the good stone ?

\- Nope..." Kaito deplored with a sad smile.

"- Give it to me then, I will bring it back to Nakamori-keibu. Let's meet in the office after that, so I can tend your hand...

\- Ok, Doc' !"

o.O.o

"- Here !" Heiji said as he threw a pack of ice to Kaito and kept one for him and his bruised face.

"- Thanks ! Nice settlement you have here boys..." The Thief pointed out, looking around him from the couch he was seated in, with both detectives now in front of him. "Looks tidier than last time I came...

\- We barely moved two days before you came, of course it was messy..." Shinichi pointed out with an indulgent smile.

"- I'm back ! " Saguru said as he entered, being a bit late as he fetched his brand new medicine material by his father's, where he left it. "Ok, now that I have the proper material, time to look at that hand...

\- You should keep your stuff here, Saguru..." The Tokyoite joked. "With Heiji around, you're not finished with bringing that bag back and forth...

\- Well, since his last bruise is my fault, I will refrain myself from giving any support to that assumption, Shinichi-kun.

\- All good, Saguru." The Osakan smiled behind his ice pack, as always forgiving easily. "So ? Will we have more information about M. Creepy ?

\- He is a criminal I used to hunt..." The blond-haired explained as he put his gloves and started to manipulate the boy's hand, to his displeasure. "A professional killer. Who seems to enjoy going after our favourite Thief..." He added, eyeing Kaito with a dark look, wondering what he'd done again to draw Spider's attention.

"- Well, he works a bit with "my" Organization. And they recently have been pretty aggressive : with the Volley comet coming soon, they are quite desperate to lay their hand on their beloved Pandora. Being a major hinder for them, they sent him after me, even if I was abroad.

\- Ya've been busy, Thief." Heiji pointed out with an ironic smile.

"- Well, you know me... Ouch !" He complained, giving a pained looked to the half brit when he removed the needle.

"- Stop being such a baby, Kaito-kun. You clearly have been through far worse... Try to move ?"

The only thing the doctor received as an answer was a pouting glare.

"- That or I cut it.

\- I thought you studied medicine, not butchery, Saguru..." The Thief smirked, though he knew, despite his straight face, his friend was joking.

He docilely made a few moves, under the blond-haired guidance.

"- Good, it looks like nothing major was hit...

\- So you said he was after you ?" Shinichi asked after a small pause, to come back to the main subject.

"- Yea, got one or two additional scars thanks to him. Finally, I was lucky not too stay too long in the same place while we were travelling with Aoko..." He admitted, looking at Hakuba when he stitched his wound after a slight anaesthesia. "Hey, you're not that bad, I don't feel anything...

\- Why do you think I finished in four years ? I trained day and night to master all the techniques I could.

\- Will appear to be useful, this forced exile then... So, as to the main subject, what else about Spider... His true name is Gunter Von Goldberg II, well, that could be an alias but that's the name he uses in the mundane world. He has a magic show centred on hypnosis and uses his skills for more offensive purposes when he puts that three red eyed helmet. His favourite weapons are, well, you have a nice sample right here, some kind of long needles. And he's not far to be as good as me disguise speaking." Kaito concluded, taking the ice-bag Saguru was holding to him as he had finished to bandage his hand.

"- That's a nice friend ya got yerself, Kaito..." The dark-skinned grinned, preferring to joke instead of worrying about having such an opponent.

"- The kind I would like to see in a jail..." The half-brit growled, jaw clenched with frustration.

"- I've rarely seen you like this, Saguru... " Shinichi observed, noticing the agitation of the usually phlegmatic detective.

"- It has been too long he is on the run, someone has to stop him. And I would be delighted to be that someone... Or part of it, at least." He admitted, looking into his friends' eyes, his unsaid question in his eyes.

"- Oh, ya'd like us ta go fer some spider huntin' ? Count me in, I've never really liked those things anyway...

\- Weakening Kaito's Organization has always been one of our goals and that'd help." Shinichi shrugged.

"- Oh, let's organize an old good war council, it's been such a long time ! " The Thief pointed out with nostalgia.

"- Hey, before goin' ta such depressin' stuff, tell us how was Vegas ! Have ya been arrested ?" Heiji asked with a wink to Kaito.

"- Maa... Not really..." The Thief started with a smile, before starting to describe his honeymoon.


	3. Chapter 3 - Provocation

**Hi there !**

 **Time for the chapter of that new story... And time for the first cliffs, yea ! ; )**

 **o.O.o**

 **JarayZ : Ahh come on, it's Kai who got the stitches, Heij just got a bruise... He won't be my favourite victim in this fic (ok, not by far but still xD). Yup, that one was fun^^ But that's right, there'll be a bit less humour in that one ^^; Yea, as adults, I couldn't imagine them going on with the -kun. It's either just the last name or, for very close relatives, the first name... Went for the later, except for Saguru : between his English and Japanese education, there'll be ages before he can drop the -kun xD Ty for the cover pic ; )**

 **Laury Rose : Haha, nah, you didn't wait at all xD Yup... But wouldn't it had been boring to just have couples where everything was good ? Real life isn't like this...^^; Oh, hi again xD Yea, I was so tempted... I wanted to stick with canon info but spider's power is just... I had to keep it ! :D Hmm, at the moment, it's just the beginning of their agency, so I don't picture them as consultants. But I can pretty much imagine Megure calling Shinichi for a complicated case later : ) Yea, with the MKO still lurking, not a good idea to have kids ^^;;;**

 **emmahoshi : Hmm its powers are revelled in the files named "Blue birthday". Haha, but it means you can read the same book or watch the same thing again and again, that's not that bad xD *hides* dunno what you're talking about ^^;;;; Nah, it was just for everything not to be just "and they lived happily after", I mean those 2 quarrelled a lot before, don't see why it would stop after they decided to become a thing ! Oh, 2nd review : ) Haha, yea, exactly : ) But for studies that could help with his detective work, there's only medicine and law so it was also a logic choice. That Spider is only in the anime. But he's so cheated I wanted to have him here, what a formidable opponent... o.O Yea, my little reminder for Shinichi's past... A bit angsty but so fun... :D**

 **WisteriaReads : Yea, back after sooo long... hey, wait ! That was the Thursday before xD Haha, yes, four years is a lot and in the meanwhile, no that much... You change a bit but I don't think you're totally an adult at 21, you're still lacking of experience in life... Ah well, as written, they're having trouble in their couple, and Heiji left the common apartment 1 month ago... I didn't want to picture just ideal relationships, with 3 couples lovey-dovey... So unrealistic :p Yup, they got married because, as they travel from time to time, it was easier to be married. But that's still pretty recent though : ) And I bet flipping skirt is still part of Kaito's ritual but... I hope for them it's going a bit further than that now xD**

 **crimson sana : Yea, here it is ! :D Hope you'll find it interesting ~**

 **Anilover : Hey, welcome in the "owners of an account" 's group, anime fan ! ; ) thanks for your previous reviews on Unexpected : ) Hope you'll like the sequel !**

 **Hebiaczek : Thank you : ) To be honest, I was a bit afraid the 4 years' gap would perhaps be a bit perturbing... So I'm glad you're ok with it so far ; )**

* * *

 **Chapter 3 - Provocation**

* * *

"- Ah, looks like you're having fun, boys ! " Aoko stated as she was invited by Shinichi in the detectives' office and heard the laughter coming from the main room.

"- Kaito is telling us about your trip in Vegas... " The azure-eyed explained with a smile.

"- Oh, Kami..." She face-palmed, embarrassed about by her fear of how detailed that honeymoon's report could be.

"- Hey, Aoko ! " Heiji welcomed with a warm smile when she finally decided to pass the door.

"- Hello Heiji ! And Saguru !

\- Good evening Aoko-kun." The blond haired said with a little nod.

"- Congratulation by the way ! " She smiled as she settled near her husband, before glaring at Kaito when she noticed the ice-pack and the bandage around his hand. "I see your new skills are already proving useful, Saguru- _sensei_. Bakaito... What happened to your "Naah, no need to come Aoko, they're just three plus Nakamori, wouldn't be fair to be two against them..." ?

\- Hey, don't call your husband like that..." The said-baka answered with a pouting face. Noticing she didn't even think about being guilty at the nickname she used, her interrogative glare still on him, he admitted "I didn't plan for our 8-legged thingies' freak to be here, else it _would_ have been easy...

\- You wish..." Hakuba objected with a flat voice, not really happy to be categorized in the "easy" ones to deal with by the Kid.

"- That bastard !" Aoko spurted, covering Saguru's comment.

"- What a language for a wedded woman, Aoko..." Shinichi smirked at the girl's heartfelt exclamation.

"- Haha, well, we all saw how gifted Nakamori-keibu was with insults at the weddin', guess that's in the genes..." Heiji snorted, remembering that waiter who ran away with red ears... The policeman had given him a piece of his mind when he bumped into him for the second time of the night, too focused in detailing one or two young ladies at the party, and dirtied the man's suit...

"- There isn't any other word for that bastard... Did you tell them ? How much a pain in the butt he was during our last heists ?!

\- Such foul words indeed, Aoko-kun..." Hakuba pointed out with a little smile, amused at the long-haired girl's rudeness, knowing it was clearly a trait of her family. "And yes, he told us. It has been a long time I wanted to handcuff him, I really think time has come...

\- You want to hunt him down ?" She asked, looking at him with hope, knowing how efficient Hakuba could be if he was determined, like he was before in his Kaitou Kid's hunt.

"- _We_ want." The Osakan specified with a smirk auguring no good for the killer.

"- This has become a case the whole agency will work on. With the help of an... unusual informer " Shinichi added, with a wink at the Thief.

"- Then that bast...

\- Aoko !" Kaito stopped her, before she could once again swear.

"- ... is going to be soon behind bars." She finished, sticking maliciously her tongue out to Kaito, before turning to the others. "Within minutes even, knowing how the four of you four work together!

\- Nah, sorry for the minutes, it'll have to wait tomorrow..." Shinichi said, barely hiding a yawn. "I'm too tired for tonight, what an idea to plan a heist at one a.m. ...

\- We're all grown up now, I thought you had the permission to go late to bed, detective..." Kaito smirked, seeing the azure-eyed was rubbing one of his eyes. "And the moon was getting up late tonight...

\- Ya're a werewolf, in fact..." Heiji joked, though he knew that specific light was needed to identify Pandora. He then got up." Ok, so I'll be leavin' too, as my host is.

\- Ah, you live together now ? " The Thief asked with a malicious smile.

"- Kind o'... " The Osakan shrugged with embarrassment.

"- Tsk, I bet you fought again with Kazuha-chan..." Aoko deduced and, seeing his face, she and Kaito knew she was right so they rolled their eyes in the same movement.

"- Nicely guessed..." Saguru pointed out with a sigh. "Looks like those two are still children at heart...

\- Well, the children will be going to bed then..." Shinichi declared with a small smirk as he put his vest before throwing a key to Saguru. "You grown up have fun making up for lost time !

\- Thank you. And good night ! " The blond-haired said, catching the key before turning to his high school friends for more chatting.

o.O.o

It was with a grumpy face and eyes red with the lack of sleep that Heiji came in the Kudô's kitchen the following morning.

"- Heya !" Shinichi said, his head popping from behind the newspaper in his hands when he heard his friend grabbed a chair near him. "I won't ask you if you slept well, your face is expressive enough... Couldn't make yourself comfortable in the guest room ?

\- Nah, the room is great, thanks... I had that creep's bad dream hauntin' me half the night... Couldn' get rid o' it..." The Osakan explained, rubbing his eyes and gently slapping his face to wake up completely. "Well, seein' ya're up before me on a Sunday, I bet ya were the same...

\- Yea, same thing..." Shinichi admitted, leaving his newspaper to get up and prepare a coffee for his friend. "Though being with Ran helped...

\- I bet..."

Both fell silent a moment, while Heiji looked at Shinichi preparing his coffee.

"- The share on the table is for you, you may want to micro-wave it first tough... " The Tokyoite said as he came back with the hot drink, pointing with the chin some cellophaned food near the dark-skinned man's arm.

"- Did ya prepare it or is it safe ?" The Osakan asked with a taunting smirk.

"- Tsk. Ran prepared it before leaving to study with some friends..."

"- On a Sunday in July ? She's not jokin' about havin' her diploma... " He pointed out with a surprised face as he grabbed some food, not even waiting to warm it, as hungry as he was.

"- I think she doesn't like the fact she's still studying when the three of us are already working so she's quite motivated...

\- Let's be as motivated as her then, in catchin' that stupid guy...

\- Ah, about that, it may come sooner than expected.

\- Somethin' happened ?"

Shinichi tapped the newspaper in front of him. "He provoked Kaito in the press. For tonight, during his show. Apparently, one of his fans accepted to lend a jewel that hasn't been displayed in public for 40 years...

\- That was fast ! Convinced by hypnosis I bet..." Heiji pointed out with a flat tone.

"- Yup, I think so.

\- Time ta see with the others then, I bet they'll be more than happy ta jump into the lion's den with us. The lion himself could be surprised even if he's expectin' us..." The Osakan said, exchanging a grin with his best friend.

o.O.o

The three detectives and the thief were seated in the office, looking at the newspaper Shinichi brought for them to see, after he shortly summed up what was the article about.

"- That's definitely a trap..." Hakuba pointed out with a flat voice.

"- Of course... " Kaito agreed before opening his arms in a shrug of defeat. "But being so close to the deadline, I can't let any of those stones slip through my fingers... Thanks to Spider, the Organization will know around midnight if that's the good stone or not, so I must retrieve it before that.

\- Well, we wanted ta kick his ass so why refuse when he gives us the ideal opportunity ?

\- Because he'll be playing on his ground... " Shinichi pointed out, less confident than his best friend.

"- You are saying we should not go there ?" Saguru asked, raising an interrogative brow.

"- I'm saying we should be more than prepared to go there as we won't have the advantage.

\- Let's work on that then..." Kaito smiled, getting up to fetch his computer for some information gathering. "Saguru and I already know how his wicked brain works, so we just need to study the place."

o.O.o

"- Meet you later, Aoko." Kaito said, gently pressing her hand as the five of them reached the main hall of the Arena where Spider was giving his show.

"- Be careful." She answered, putting a light kiss on his cheek before meddling in the crowd.

"- So you didn't manage to convince her not to come here tonight ?" Saguru commented as they started to walk again, referring to the discussion the three of them had the previous night, about the girl not wanting to let Kaito go alone anymore on his heists, above all when they implied an assassin of the calibre of Spider.

"- It won't be a problem, I as ked her to meet us only once everything is settled. She'll stay in the main hall as a back-up.

\- She seems quite motivated, hope she'll respect that order o' yers, Kaito..." Heiji pointed out with a smirk of irony.

"- Did you define "settled" to her ?" Shinichi added, wondering if the girl wouldn't turn to be too stubborn.

"- After four years working together, she exactly knows what I'm talking about..." The Thief shrugged. "And her father will be here tonight, so I know she'll behave...

\- Ya make her sound even worse than ya..." The Osakan snorted, imagining an Aoko almost as hot blooded as himself.

"- For sure, she takes to heart that "accomplice" mission..." Saguru pointed out with a flat tone, a bit annoyed to have to admit both his best friends were criminals.

"- But that saved me once or twice so I won't complain, she's efficient... Ok boys, time to split up" Kaito said as they reached a place where two different hallways parted, one to each side of the Arena, to fill the tiers by both sides.

"- We'll wait for you signal then, Kaito." Shinichi stated with a nod.

"- I cannot believe you are still using those Detective Boys' badges... "Hakuba pointed out, giving a flat look as the little pin clearly standing out with his clothes, despite the fact he managed to mostly hid it behind his vest's collar. "At least change the design, this toy-like item doesn't fit to the mature aura I'm displaying..."

The three other sighed to Saguru's narcissism : even if it had been better than when they first met him, he sometimes couldn't stop himself to display it.

"- They don' look great but they're useful... " Heiji tried to justify."We even used them in some cases with Shinichi, quite handy ta lead an investigation on separate ways...

\- Oh, does Shinichi still wear his glasses also ?" Kaito joked before snorting when he saw the Tokyoite face. "Haha, you so miss your "Conan" 's days..."

The only answer from the detective of the East was a tongue childishly stuck out before he made a sign to Hattori to follow him.

"- Laters ! " The Osakan winked with a wave of the hand.

"- Let's head to the tiers' door, we should be able to sneak in to have a prior look at the scene..." Kaito proposed to a day-dreaming Hakuba. "Saw something ?

\- No... I'm imagining things, probably..." The half-brit admitted, leaving of the eyes the spot he was focused on. "Let's go."

Both men walked quickly in the hallways, still fighting a bit with the crowd, though there were less people there than at the entrance. Once again, Saguru's attraction was caught by something again so he stopped and turned to look behind him, unnoticed to Kaito who was still going forwards.

A man with a hat a few steps behind winked at him so he came closer to check.

"- Came with a few friends, _Saguru-chan_ ?" The man taunted with an insolent smirk.

The blond-haired didn't know that face but the voice and the nickname...

"- Spider ! " He hissed with anger, trying to fight the flow of people to reach him.

"- Catch me if you can !" He waved with a laugh, before escaping through a door labelled 'private'.

 _"That bloody..."_ Hakuba thought, rushing after him, not even trying to warn the Thief, not wanting to let the assassin take any lead on him as he'd probably lose him in those corridors.

Saguru jumped as he saw some clothes behind the door when he closed it, to recognize the hat and the coat the disguised Spider had on him just a moment ago, guessing he'd probably be in his "work attire" now, meaning black clothes and three-eyed helmet.

And indeed, a bit further, he recognized its characteristic red lights.

"- Stop !" He asked, probably by reflex as he was intelligent enough to know it wouldn't work.

Of course the man disappeared again, running in front of him, leaving just enough distance for the half-brit to follow him, clearly trying to lure him to a specific place, but it was too late for Hakuba to stop, even if he had realized by now it wasn't a so good idea to follow him alone.

Panting, the detective finally reached the main scene of the Arena, for the moment barely lightened, just behind the black curtains hiding the accessories needed for the show. But that was where Spider was concealing himself. The man had waited for him to pass near him to stretch out his arm just at the level of his throat at the last moment and, taken along his own speed, the blond-haired couldn't stop and was hit just below the jaw, his speed adding to the shock, sending him on his back to the floor.

Coughing to catch his breath, tears in the eyes after such a blow, Saguru couldn't even react as the man grabbed his collar and slammed his back against something hard, before blocking his hands on it thanks to some metallic ties.

"- You were an idiot to come here, detective, to try to play on my ground." The criminal mocked, as the blond-haired felt his feet were leaving the ground, when he rose into the air, only hold by his hands. "Maa, you'll be the appetizer while I wait for the Kid... You both seem close, I bet this will angry him a bit..."

Dizzy as he was, the detective still could see the man was getting one of his needles out and gulped in apprehension when he saw him raising his arm.

"- If that's a fight you want, I'm here !" Kid's voice stated as he shoot a card to counter the needle Spider just aimed at Hakuba.

 _"Just on time... "_ Kaito thought with relief as he saw Saguru seemed mainly unharmed despite the fact he looked a bit out. _"Acting so hot blooded... damn, we already have Heiji for that and one is more than enough..."_

The Thief had noticed the blond-haired man's disappearance just after he passed the door. Seeing it moved, he guessed the detective had followed some track, perhaps even Spider himself. With a curse, he pursued them and called the two other detectives when he saw where he ended, comforted in his first idea : the criminal had lured his friend and trapped him in the place he was the most familiar with, his scene. When he saw Spider wasn't even waiting for the Kid to appear before hurting Hakuba, he quickly changed in his white costume to intervene and stop the murderous needle.

"- Free him, that's me you want !

\- Indeed, little Thief... I'll gladly obey to your order, if that's what you want..." He grinned, pushing some hidden remote in his pocket to release the detective.

"- Bastard..." Kaito spurted as he saw he didn't lower Hakuba and his friend was going to fall to the ground after a 4 meters free fall.

He rushed to reach the detective, desperately stretching his arms out to soften his landing, and had a grunt when he caught him, forcing both to fall on the floor.

As the Thief opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was three red lights, just above his head.

"- Chance !" Spider smirked, using Kaito's distraction to hypnotize him. "Looks like that detective was good bait after all..." He laughed, when he felt the Kid was in his control.

"- Get away from them !" Heiji ordered as he and Shinichi finally found them, panting from their long run.

"- Oh, more people to play with..." The criminal laughed, when the two others raised their arms, protecting their eyes from his hypnosis. "That's so nice for you all to have come, as this one seems quite out, I needed more prays for my news toy...

\- Saguru !" Shinichi called when he saw the detective Spider just pointed out with his hand, with Kaito kneeling at him.

He rushed there while Heiji head to the assassin, positioning himself between him and his friends.

"- How is he, Kid ?" The azure-eyed man asked looking at the blond-haired, as he kneeled just at Kaito's side.

"- Go ahead my dear puppet..." Spider laughed, throwing a pack of needles to the Thief's feet with a smirk.

Shinichi turned to look at the magician, to be welcomed by cold eyes and a firm knife-hand strike behind the ear.

"- What... " He barely could articulate as he felt he was passing out and fell on the floor on Hakuba's side.

"- Hey, what's the matter, Kid ?" Heiji asked, looking at the scene of the corner of the eye as he was still facing the murderer, seeing Kudô was out.

The only reaction from Kaito was to get up after he pocketed the needles and to stare at him with blank eyes.

"- Oh, don't bother, he doesn't hear you... Kid, kill him.

\- Kid ? " The Osakan called as he saw the Thief heading towards him, taking a needle out. "What the... ?" He spurted as he avoided the projectile sent at him by throwing himself on the side.

 _" Crap..."_ The detective thought, forced to see his friend wasn't listening.

In the faint light, he saw a mike stand not far away from him and rushed, avoiding one or two other needles in the process, before rolling down the scene with it. Quickly removing everything unnecessary, he soon found himself with a one meter long iron pole, just in time to parry another needle in a metallic noise.

" Shake it off, Kid ! I don' want ta have ta hurt ya..." Heij said as he got up, holding his home-made weapon as a sword.

As he didn't listen, they quickly exchanged some blows, needles against pole. The Osakan wasn't fighting back, just defending himself, and was trying to get them closer to Spider who was looking at them with a mad smile, snorting every time an attack was close to get rid of the dark-skinned.

Feeling he was close enough, Heiji held his breath and took out one of the soporific bomb Kaito gave them beforehand, in case the Thief would need their help. He rushed to the Spider, taking cover in the smoke, and, seeing what should be his shadow, he lifted his weapon high above his head to strike the man.

And that was with widened eyes, just like in slow motion, he saw the shadow being hidden by another, a one with a white cloak, heading at fast speed towards him to protect his "master", stabbing him with a needle before he could even react.

He let his weapon go, just before the pain that was starting to reach his mind went worse as the Thief took his needle out of his chest. Unable to hold his breath anymore, coughing as he fell on his knees, Heiji felt his consciousness leaving him, though he didn't know himself if it was because of the gas or the wound in his chest.

Panting, he blinked one last time, seeing through his half closed eyelids the Thief, with his white gloves now tainted with blood like some third-rate murderer, eyes still blank as he watched him fall on the floor, without any expression.

 _"Crap..."_ The Osakan thought before finally fainting.

* * *

 **Ok, let's say it now : promise, this will be tamer than "detective" for Heiji's wounds xD (unless you ask otherwise xD). I needed this plotline-wise, you'll understand when you'll see the role of the others in the next chapters why it had to be him... Rest** **assured, everyone will have his share...~**

 **And I know Hakuba can sound a bit OoC but he was really loosing his calm against Spider in the anime and I wanted to show that side of him.**


	4. Chapter 4 - Jailed

**Heya !**

 **Time to enter another chapter : )**

 **And see what happened to our boys...**

 **I bet you didn't see what's coming next... Aoko will be... Haha, well, see by yourself ; )**

 **And, for your info, I think I'll be very soon starting to publish twice a week, as I'm writing this one pretty fast. Probably next week ^_^**

 **o.O.o**

 **emmahoshi : It happened to me once or twice to forget I read a fic and remember halfway but not to that extent, except perhaps for faces, I'm really bad too xD Hmm since Nakamori is swearing a lot, I liked the idea of it having rubbed on Aoko^^ 9 pm o.O Wow... Being a night owl, I would never ever be able to go to bed so early xD I rarely read papers also (though I'm often on some news' website) but for detectives, reading newspapers every morning is part of the job ! Ah, in a discussion between Hakuba and Kaito in Alliances, I made it sound like that, yes... That was obvious to me but it perhaps wasn't for the readers : ) Yup, I wanted Spider to be really awful and had that idea... My bad ; ) Haha, well, there'll be injuries but... As cliffs, that's part of my style xD *Looks at the end of this chapter* Naah, you'll be safe today ; )**

 **anilover : I know everyone love those... Am I mistaken ? xD Ah, don't forget it's only been 4 years so in an adult life, it's nothing : ) Oh, a second review ? Argh, you saw right through me, I admit, I like to torture my fav' characters physically or mentally... My affection is a bit wicked, some of my readers already pointed that to me :p  
**

 **JarayZ : Oh, there was a time lag then xD Uhh good luck with those... in France, school is just beginning, I hope no one has exams yet ^^; Haha, to me at least, there's always a good reason xD Yup, I couldn't picture him without a -kun... except perhaps for Kaito, maybe later in the story : ) Nah, of course, no one died... I think... Well, you'll see xD. No worries, focus on your exams, there isn't enough in a life to mess each up xD**

 **crimson sana : Haha, but, remember, at the 1rst chapter of alliances, Aoko had already been kidnapped and Heiji shot... I'm really slow this time xD Thanks ! ; )**

 **Laury Rose : Lol, sorry, I should tame my hypnosis skills when I write xD Maa, I try to keep a reasonable length to my chapters so it shouldn't be that long to read ; ) Yup.. It gave him a more human side, don't you think ? Haha, answer in that chapter... I know only Akako has been under Spider's influence in the anime but, knowing she's a witch and kind of loves Kaito, it proved how strong that was o.O So I imagined Kaito under his influence... Aoko will appear in that chapter, you'll see under how xD Hmm and sorry, at the beginning, I'll only be publishing once a week, time for me to work a bit on the story : )**

 **Stardustadventurer : Thank you ! Well, I think I made them all a bit childish (uh, ok, except Hakuba xD), I didn't want them to grow up too fast ; )**

* * *

 **Chapter 4 : Jailed**

* * *

During the fight, Hakuba had been slowly going back to his senses, and, after the mist from the small bomb dissipated, he could witness a scene he'd never expect to see. Spider was turning his back at him, focused on the two boys in front of him. As the half-brit saw them, he could easily guess what happened, with Hattori on the floor and Kaito with bloodied hands, though it was hard for his brain to process the idea of his best friend stabbing another friend.

"- Kid !" He called as he saw the teen was kind of frozen, looking at his hands with empty eyes. "Bloody hell, what do you think you are doing ?!" He swore, losing his usual phlegm. "Hypnosis or not, I know you cannot violate your 'no one gets hurt' policy !

\- You're wasting your saliva, _Saguru-chan_... " Spider laughed, turning to the blond-haired to mock the boy's anger and despair. "You lose everything you are when under my control. Though I'm nice enough this time to let his true self see what I'm asking him to do... That's quite funnier like that ! Kid, that detective on the floor is still breathing, finish him ! "

Hakuba looked around him, desperate to find anything to stop Kaito, who had grabbed a needle again and stepped towards the Osakan, under Spider's smile of pure happiness. The criminal was completely focused on the scene, knowing he was killing two persons at the same time : the dark-skinned on the floor's life was soon going to end and along with it, the Thief's sanity.

"- The watch..." Shinichi whispered, still too feeble to move but awake enough to know what the blond-haired was looking for.

 _" I will never complain about those gadgets anymore..."_ Saguru thought as he grabbed the Tokyoite's wrist and aimed at the closest and probably best target, Spider.

Not expecting any danger to come from two half-knocked out detectives, the man didn't even flinch when the soporific needle hit his neck and he fell on the floor, properly asleep.

The illusionist's mind control immediately disappeared, and Kaito let go of the needle he was holding before falling on his knees, too weak to even stand after the struggle he fought in his own mind against the criminal's control. Seeing his bloodied hands and Heiji lying motionless on the floor just near him, Kaito's eyes widened and he started hyperventilating as his mind was overwhelmed by the memories of what he just did, starting when he knocked out Shinichi. How he really had tried to kill the Osakan, how a part of him coldly calculated he'd do more damage if he removed the needle out of the boy's chest, ignoring the fact the 'true him' was shrieking in horror and begging to stop.

Or were those both sides part of himself ?

He started to rock himself, eyes still wide, unable to convince himself there wasn't some kind of blood lust monster hiding in his personality.

Hakuba had gotten up, helping Shinichi on his feet, and they both rushed to their two friends. While the doctor was bending on Heiji, the Tokyoite finally noticed Kaito's face.

A frown on his face, he patted his shoulder. "Hey, you ok ? We got him, it's over... Kaito ?" He added with a low voice, seeing he wasn't responding.

He crouched to him, to see he was clearly in shock, that was written all over his face, with his half opened mouth and his terrorized eyes, not even hearing what he was saying. The azure-eyed detective was going to grab his arms to force him to look at him but stopped when he heard some precipitated footsteps.

"- I heard a fight over here, Nakamori-keibu !" Shinichi heard from really close.

He looked once more at the Thief but gave up : he knew he would need more than seconds to get over what happened but they couldn't afford much more...

 _"Crap..."_ He swore, before messing his hair and trying to put that kind of smirk that was never leaving Kaito's face. The detective could only hope now the faint lights would be helping him to pass as his friend.

The Tokyoite also took out a pair of handcuffs he got from Takagi one day they worked on a case together and that he was bringing with him every time after that. He was cuffing himself to Kid when Nakamori drew aside the curtains and froze at the scene, his face paling several shades as some of his men also arrived.

"- Is that ... Is that Kid who did that ?" He asked, so struck by the surprise to see a Kid with bloodied hands near of a bleeding body on the floor he was losing his words.

"- Someone call an ambulance !" A policeman yelled as he spotted Heiji, half hidden by Hakuba wh was bent on him.

"- Nakamori-keibu, I got him !" Shinichi claimed, raising his hand in the hair to show he had cuffed the moonlight thief.

"- Kaito-kun ?!" The inspector recognized as he squinted to see the boy in the faint light. "Is that the Kid who...

\- I don't know, I came here after the fight...

\- Still, well done, Kaito-kun... I'll be taking him now, he may be dangerous, I can't have him tied to a civilian..."

The policeman grabbed his own handcuffs to put them on the other arm of the Thief and, with a shaking hand, was removing the Kid's hat as the fake Kuroba removed his own cuffs.

"- What the f..." He said, as Shinichi was turning to have some news on the Osakan from Hakuba. "Kaito-kun !

\- ... Yes ? Ouch ! " The Tokyoite answered as the policeman strongly pinched his cheek. "What's the matter... ?

\- Look by yourself !" Ginzô said with a move of the hand to show the Thief's hat-less face, revealing the same face than Kuroba. There was also a red dot on his cheek, proof the inspector also tried to pinch an imaginary mask.

"- What the ..." The azure-eyed detective said, trying to display a fake surprise.

"- Dad ! Everything alright ? " Aoko said as she entered the place, using her father's name to go in as she followed the two medics who had been called for Heiji,. "What the..."

She did her best to keep a straight face as she walked towards her father but her hands shook a bit as she saw the scene. Quickly explaining something to the doctors who just came in, probably a medical status, Hakuba was compressing some wound on the chest of a man on the floor, and the characteristic colour of his skin clearly implied it was her Osakan friend. Looking at him with wide eyes was the Kaitou Kid, handcuffed to her father, and the both of them were near another one who, after a second look, was clearly Shinichi with ruffled hair, and who was blinking at her with a slight panic in his eyes.

"- ... Kaito ?" She softly called, not completely grabbing the situation but trusting the Tokyoite in his judgement, and he was clearly asking her to play along.

"- Ah, Aoko, perfect, you'll be able to help us... The Kid disguised himself as Kaito, can you recognize which one is your husband ?"

The girl approached both, looking at each with suspicion, noticing with a pinch of pity "her Kaito" looked in shock, and, seeing his bloody gloves, she guessed something serious happened.

She finally threw herself at the fake Kaito's neck. "Kaito, are you alright ? I can't believe you helped to catch the Kaitou Kid !

\- You're sure, Aoko ?

\- I wouldn't do that if I wasn't..." She said, cupping Shinichi's face to kiss him deeply.

The Tokyoite tensed but forced himself quickly to relax, sharing the kiss to play his role, knowing Ran would kill him for that but the emergency was to convince the inspector the Thief wasn't Kaito despite his face and that was the quickest way.

"- Maa, Ahouko, I know we are married but some things should be kept for inside the house..." He scolded with a gentle smile.

"- That's your punishment for putting yourself in danger, Bakaito ! " She retorted, sticking maliciously her tongue to him. " What are you going to do with him ?" Aoko asked with a sign of the head to the Thief, trying to use a flat tone not to show her attachment.

"- We'll be taking him to the MPD. We need to know first who he is if we want to start a trial... And who's the other one ?" Nakamori asked with a sign of the head towards the still sleeping killer.

"- A criminal I used to look for..." Saguru explained, wiping his hands on his handkerchief as he turned to them after a last nod to the medics who were evacuating Heiji on a stretcher. "His name in your police files should be "Spider". He's dangerous and must be taken in custody. For murder.

\- Noted.

\- I'll quickly change my clothes" The blond-haired explained with a sad smile at his tainted shirt "and come back to explain everything to you. Being a Kid specialist, I'm sure I can be of some help for his interrogation.

\- Of course Saguru-kun. Meet you there."

They both exchanged a little nod and Nakamori left with the still frozen Thief who docilely followed him.

"- How's Heiji ? " Shinichi asked to Hakuba, finally letting his worry display on his face as there was less policemen around them.

"- That needle touched the lung and, since he was knocked out by that soporific gas, I couldn't question him to estimate the damages... The x-ray will tell, but with a bit of luck... The wound looks impressive but the needle was small enough not to be too destructive. Nice idea you had, though, Shinichi-kun. And nice reflexes, Aoko-kun.

\- Ran will so kill me when she'll hear about that..." The Tokyoite deplored as he face-palmed.

"- Well, that was efficient and solved one of our immediate problems, so that was worth it..." Hakuba pointed out to cheer him up a bit, patting his shoulder.

"- Sooo..." Aoko started with a low voice, putting her fists on her hips to glare at both detectives. "Can any of you tell me why I French-kissed Shinichi ? And let my father arrest my own husband ?"

o.O.o

Kaito started to leave his trance when one of the policemen gave him some prisoner's clothes and asked him to change. He blinked, looking at the orange uniform in his hands and noticed his gloves and vest had already been removed. He quickly did as told and was led into a small cell, with a barred door, where he let himself fall on the small bed attached on the wall.

The Thief looked as his blackened fingers, guessing the colour was due to the fact they probably took his fingerprints. The black was still better than the scarlet he previously had on his gloves, though a bit had tainted the bandages covering his former injury below.

He took his head between his hands, trying to get a grip on himself. Now that the shock was starting to fade away, Kaito was angry after himself to have been caught so easily in Spider's illusion. Forced to be the powerless witness of the acts he commanded to him.

He didn't even know if they caught him... He didn't remember what happened after the man's presence left his mind, except that he blacked out. He didn't even remember if... He didn't want to think about Heiji. Under mind control or not, he had been the one stabbing him, his gloves were proof of it.

"- It's not your fault, you know."

Kaito raised his head, looking at his visitor, and recognized the unmistakable blond hair of his best friend.

"- If I hadn't rushed like a bloody idiot, you wouldn't have needed to protect me and none of this would have happened..." Hakuba added, with a low voice, keeping an eye on the officer a bit further away.

"- You weren't the one running like mad throwing a pack of killing needles after one of your friends.

\- Neither were you. Spider was. He just used your body.

\- Saguru, how is he ? " The Thief dared to ask, hands shaking as he feared to learn the truth about his friend. "Is he...

\- Heiji-kun's alive, Shinichi-kun went to the hospital to have some news, but knowing our Osakan, I know this won't be enough to send him to the other side. And Spider has been arrested. I asked my father to have a strict surveillance on him, he's in quarantine.

\- ... Good to hear." Kaito whispered with a sigh of relief.

"- Next thing is to get you out before that Organization of yours sends some men to help you having an "accident" in jail.

\- To go where ?" The boy deplored with a bitter smile. "My identity has been discovered, Nakamori-keibu is now aware that his son-in-law is the Thief he tried to catch for so long...

\- He doesn't know.

\- What ?!"

Hakuba had a satisfied smirk at the startled face of his friend, proud to have been able to surprise him, as this happened only on rare occasions.

"- Thanks to Shinichi-kun and Aoko-kun, he only knows your face looks like Kuroba Kaito, though you're not him.

\- But my fingerprints were taken...

\- And there was no reason for you to be in his files, being a totally respectable magician..." The blond haired added, finishing his sentence with a snort, to point out the irony of that affirmation. "Though I can only advise you to find a way to erase those from their files once you're out, it could be hindering you in the future. 01:44:59 a.m." He suddenly spurted with a look at his pocket watch. "The time I could negotiate with Nakamori-keibu is over. Play the role you want during this interrogation, Kaitou Kid, your identity is still a mystery to everyone ! "


	5. Chapter 5 - Escape plan

**Heya ! : )**

 **As promised, here is a new chapter, and not on a Sunday ; )**

 **I think I'll be publishing on Wednesdays now : ) And Sundays as usual.**

 **Sooo time to see how the guys (and girls :p) will imagine a way out for the Kid !**

 **o.O.o**

 **Anilover : Yes, he will go to jail : ) Hmmm I can tell you we'll speak of Spider later but won't tell you how or why... No spoilers ; )**

 **YJV : Hmm we won't see it "live", sorry ^^;;**

 **Lady Paper : That's an easy wish to satisfy ; ) Here is more ! ^^**

 **emmahoshi : Haha, well, I tricked you a bit, saying we were years laters, SHinichi could have dropped that watch ; ) Hmm there wasn't any way to avoid Kaito being caught so better let him, instead of sending all the group to jail for helping a criminal, ne ? Yea, as I said, I liked this idea of Habuka being Heiji-like... Looks like it rubbed on him ; ) Ah yes, so many questions... Answers to most in this chapter : )**

 **Hebiaczek : Ah, sorry, I didn't want to make it "live"... Having Kaito being Kaito is fun, but this is not made to be a Kaitou Kid fic, he'll have enough time dedicated to him after : )**

 **crimson sana : Haha, thanks ; )**

 **JarayZ : Haha, that's why I knew I wasn't spoiling you too much by saying Aoko would be here :p Oh, how did you guess? ; ) Nah, you'll have the "how" in this chap, as to know if it's successful or not... Hmm next chapter, sorry ^^ Wow, gratz for being free ! :D**

* * *

 **Chap 5 : Escape plan**

* * *

"- I can't believe that guy is so stubborn, even when he's cornered like this." Nakamori-keibu admitted with a sigh as he was looking at the Kid being brought back to his cell after more than two hours of questioning." I'm not even sure we could have gotten anything out of him within the whole night...

\- Well, it was time to stop, I indeed think there was nothing else to do tonight, it is a better idea to rest and start again after a few hours of sleep..." Hakuba observed, secretly happy the inspector finally gave up for the night, as it'll allow him to at last work on a way to get him out.

"- Even after so long, you're still the voice of reason, Hakuba-kun... I'm glad to have you by my side for this, it's a bit hard to question that damn guy when he's got Kaito-kun's face, I guess you feel the same...

\- Yes... We couldn't find a way to break through Kid's illusion but it's only a matter of time..." Saguru promised with a firm and confident voice. "With him behind bars, time is in our favour. I think congratulations are in order, Nakamori-keibu ! That's quite an achievement in your career to catch him after so long.

\- Haha, yea, I may even feel slightly disturbed without that goal... To think it was mostly thanks to my son-in-law !" The inspector grinned with a proud face.

"- Yes, Aoko-kun showed a great taste when she chose him, clearly ..." The blond hair said, doing his best to keep a straight face, having an ironic snort in his mind.

"- Clearly... Ok, time to rest a bit. Meet around 10 a.m. ? I'll bring the coffee.

\- We'll need it. Good night to you inspector !" Hakuba said, waving at the policeman and turning to leave the place.

 _"OK... Time to have some news... I hope everyone is still up..."_ The half brit thought when he took out his phone to text Shinichi, not wanting to call in case he'd be sleeping.

As he opened his car, he smiled to see the Tokyoite was already calling him back.

"- Hakuba speaking.

\- Saguru ?" The azure-eyed detective's voice was a bit sleepy but seeing how fast he called, he was probably just tired and hadn't slept yet.

"- You sound like you should be in your bed, Shinichi-kun...

\- The doc told me to keep Heiji awake the first hours so we tried to kill time together. I'm putting him on speaker.

\- How are you doing, Heiji-kun ?" The blond-haired asked as he heard the speaker was activated.

"- Ready fer a skewer costume fer Halloween..." The Osakan answered with a feeble but amused voice.

"- I hope for you this wound will be closed before that... I guess they started the draining ?

\- If drainin' is bein' connected ta some horribly noisy machine that takes whatever it can out o' my lung, yea, they started...

\- Yes, that's it. Well, you shouldn't complain, as the hole was small, this will probably avoid you to undergo a surgery." Hakuba temporized as he felt the boredom in his friend's voice.

"- Let's cross our fingers then." Shinichi wished before putting his hand on his chin, looking at the phone on Heiji's bed. "How is... our friend doing ?

\- I could speak with him face to face before the questioning." The blond-haired said, looking around his car to check he was alone in the parking, fearing, though it was extremely improbable, that someone could be overhearing him. "I had to shake him a bit first, his self-pity was touching but wouldn't help to get him out...

\- Remind me ta kick this Ahou's ass about that once I'm out..." The Osakan asked as he shook his head. "Clearly wasn' his fault.

\- That was mostly the message I tried to put through his thick head. And apparently it worked, as it was just him having fun during the questioning. No one knows who he is and the inspector gave up 10 minutes ago. I'll be going back there tomorrow morning at 10.

\- All good then." Shinichi said with a small smirk, imagining the Thief trying to drive the policeman crazy with elusive answers. "Though we'd better have a plan before then.

\- Yes. It would only be harder to free once he'll be sent to jail and, identity established or not, they'll send him there after 24 hours. We don't want that...

\- Clearly..." Heiji nodded, knowing, like the other detectives, the Thief would be harder to free and probably in much more danger in a jail, with all the enemies he could have.

"- Any news from Aoko ?

\- Not yet..." Hakuba answered to the Tokyoite after a quick glance at his phone. "She said she was heading to see Kuroba-san.

\- With her past, she's due ta have some ideas on how ta get him out..." The Osakan pointed out with a smirk.

"- We aren't even supposed to know that, Heiji..." Shinichi said with a flat tone.

"- Though it won't change the fact she could be quite an asset in determining a good plan. Should we meet at her house then, Shinichi-kun ?

\- Yes, I think... You'll be alright if I let go of your hand, _Hei-chan_ ?

\- Tss, bast..." The dark-skinned detective started with a flat glare, advancing his hand to slap the back of the laughing Tokyoite's head. "Ouch...

\- Don't move, Baka." Shinichi said, putting a soothing hand on his arm. "Meet you there Saguru.

\- Noted. I'll be texting Aoko-kun to warn her about our arrival."

Hakuba then hung up and the azure-eyed detective pocketed his phone.

"- Joking aside, you sure you'll be ok ?" He said with a look at his best friend. "That was quite a blow, you scared me there...

\- No worries, pal." Heiji grinned before winking at him. "I got plenty o' nurses prettier than you who look more than motivated ta look after me..."

The Tokyoite smiled at the comment, having also noticed the almost bare-chested Osakan seemed to interest an appreciable part of the female staff : the Kendo he was practising for so long was doing wonders with his upper-body. "Don't do anything you'll regret later... Kazuha is still waiting for you and not settling it first would be...

\- I know that." The dark-skinned man answered, with a darker face. "Go now, get that damn Thief out o' jail an' let me rest !" He finished, his grin coming back.

\- I will !" Shinichi committed with a small smile, after one last pat on his friend's shoulder before getting up to the door.

"- Good. See ya laters with good news !" Heiji said, settling back correctly, his grin fading a bit now that he was alone to face his pain. Closing his eyes, he laid his head back on his pillow. He was annoyed not being able to help but, with his friends in charge, he knew he could be optimistic.

o.O.o

"- I need an IV of coffee..." Shinichi stated as he fell on one of the chairs in the dining room of the Kuroba's household, rubbing his eyes.

That made Hakuba smirk behind his own cup of the brownish drink, though he had to admit he didn't look better than the Tokyoite 10 minutes ago when he arrived, and had even exchanged his usual tea against a coffee, clearly in need of something stronger.

"- Let's start with just a cup if you don't mind..." Aoko said with a wink, going back to the kitchen with Chikage.

Kaito's mother had come back from Vegas with her son and her daughter-in-law, wanting to hang around a bit more with them, as she told them she was feeling a bit lonely in the former _'Sin city',_ and she would feel it even more after a whole month with them. So she was back to her house, and had been there when Aoko had called her to organise a war council to get the Thief out of jail as soon as possible.

Five minutes later, both girls came back with coffee and a plate of sandwiches for what was starting to be quite the late snack, as it was almost 5 a.m..

"- So, any big idea for the plan "let's get Kaito out of jail" anyone ?" Aoko asked with a look at the faces around her as she settled on a chair.

"- I'm not sure I'll be of any help..." Chikage started, humbly admitting what could be her helplessness.

"- Oh, come on, with the past you got..." Aoko glared, not wanting to beat around the bush when they had such a little delay to elaborate something efficient.

"-Oh dear, did Kaito tell you..." The three others' nods were enough to answer the woman's question, making her face-palm with embarrassment. "Ok, no use to hide that... I was more specialized in thefts than evasion but I can tell you I don't think it's a good idea to just break in... Better use ruse for that one, we have to make them doubt about his identity...

\- I was also thinking that." Hakuba agreed, looking at the former Phantom Lady. "We will very probably need your skills in mask's manufacturing.

\- What, want to say Kaito's face was superglued on his real one ?" Aoko commented with a small smirk, remembering the Thief already used that trick, though his face had been sore for days after, as it had been pretty hard to remove it.

"- Something like that, yea..." Shinichi approved."We thought about it with Heiji... Would there be any Kid rival that would come to mind ? We could create a story how one of those worked with Spider to frame him with murder and that Spider did his mask...

\- But we would need a face known by the police and whose prints aren't in their files... " The blond haired pointed out, massaging his temples to get rid of the beggining of a migraine that was preventing him to think straight. "I'm starting to clearly regret this hiatus... Anyone you could think of, Aoko-kun ? Since you've worked with him those past years, maybe...

\- What about that Delon ?" Aoko tried after a pause. "After that case where Kaito made a fool of him, he'd been fired by the princess. Rumours said he turned to organized crime since...

\- Oh, I read about that case ! The jewel's name was... "Beaucoup de soleil à Paris", right ?" Shinichi remembered, hitting with his fist his other hand. "But hadn't he also been humiliated by your father? Since he's the one who retrieved the stone..." The girl nodded so he continued. "That could explain why he would have Kaito's face, that would be a way to dirty Nakamori-keibu's reputation... His career would be destroyed if the Kaitou Kid turned to be his son-in-law !"

Aoko had a small cough and smirked at him. "Well, he is... But let's try to keep that secret, ok ?

\- Still, that's a great idea. And since they're both Europeans, it is a reasonable possibility for them to have met there..." Hakuba added, more and more interested by that plan.

"- Well, give me a recent picture of that man and I'll gladly start to work !" Chikage smiled maliciously.

"- Consider it done, if I can borrow your computer. " Shinichi said as he got up.

"- And we still have to think on how to plan all this...

\- That'll be an all-nighter, boys !" Aoko winked with a smile.

o.O.o

Seeing no one was looking at him, Shinichi sighed discreetly for the hundredth time. He was currently in the MPD's headquarters, with Aoko and her father, but it was hard for him to even stand after such a short night, and even more to have to play 'Kaito' as the girl was blabbering with the inspector about the medias covering the famous Kaitou Kid's arrest.

Under the pretext that she brought him fresh clothes, the magician's assistant had been able to drive him out of the interrogation's room for a moment, to allow Chikage to sneak in, with Hakuba's help.

The blond-haired was distracting the guard at the entrance while the woman was working on her son's masks.

"- Just stop struggling, Kai...

\- But you tickle me when you put those masks, I tell you each time... " The Thief complained as he wriggled on his chair.

"- Perhaps you'd prefer to stay in jail, Baka of a son ?" Chikage mocked with a flat look at Kaito's fake pouting expression, though he nevertheless stopped to move. "I knew we'd agree on that one. Ok, first mask done, one to go.

\- I won't make it..." The indigo-eyed complained, excessively porting his hand to his head.

"- Stop behaving like a kid...

\- But that's what I do ! "

Chikage had a small laugh, unable to keep her seriousness at her son. "That, I know, Baka..." She smiled, gently pinching his nose. "Your torture is over, son. Here, just try not to use too much force or you'll hurt yourself with it..."

Kaito looked at the small idem she put in his hand, a kind of ring with a small blade he was supposed to use to cut the first mask with, just a bit so the witnesses would see he wears a disguise.

"- Who do you think you're talking to, Kaa-san ?" He retorted with a Kid-like smirk.

"- To my beloved son ! Ok, time for me to work on my other tasks...

\- Be careful." Kaito said with his eyes suddenly serious.

"- Who do you think you're talking to ?" The woman also retorted, mirroring her son's smirk.

Chikage sneaked into the corridor and winked to Hakuba as she silently passed in the guard's back, to let him know she finished her work.

Her timing was perfect, as Nakamori-keibu appeared on the other side of the hallway.

"- Sorry for leaving you alone, Hakuba-kun !" He apologized as he came back with the bag his daughter brought him.

"- It's ok, Inspector. I was wondering, perhaps it's time for a little break ? I'm afraid I must admit I'm starting to be a bit hungry... It's 13:55:48, after all...

\- Hard to work on an empty stomach, eh ? Let's grab something to eat quickly..." The policeman proposed before turning to the agent Saguru had been talking with. "Hey, Tadashi, can you bring him back to his cell ?

\- Yes sir !" The man agreed taking out his key to free the Thief of the chains linking him to the table, though he was still handcuffed after that. "Let's go."

Kaito docilely followed him, keeping a straight face as he smirked in his mind : this was probably his last trip to his cell and if he was lucky enough and according to the time the blond-haired had given, he wouldn't even see the bars of the door before having a chance to escape.

"- Hey you !" A policeman called as they were both going to the elevator. "You're Tadashi, right ?

\- Yes... ?

\- Yamamoto is calling for you, you have to meet him immediately in his office !

\- Ugh..."

Apparently this Yamamoto seemed unpopular, according to the officer's face.

"- Yea, you shouldn't have him wait..." The other man said with a sad and comprehensive smile, condolences in his voice. "I'm bringing him back to his cell.

\- Thanks !"

A brow risen, Kaito looked at the man going away after he threw the cuffs' key to his colleague. The other pulled his handcuffs towards a door near the elevators.

"- Let's take the stairs." He said, though it was more an order than a proposition.

The Thief's suspicions were confirmed when, after 2 or 3 flights of steps, the man took a gun with a silencer out.

"- I'm here to deliver you a little present from the Organization, Kaitou Kid..." The fake policeman stated with a smile presaging nothing good.

 _"Crap..."_ The Thief thought, clenching his jaw, sweat-dropping at the weapon pointed at him.


	6. Chapter 6 - Out !

**Heya !**

 **Time to get rid of that cliffy : )**

 **And, after a small epilogue for that part with Spider, we'll be heading to another adventure... ; )**

 **PS : I posted a chapter last Wednesday, don't forget to check it first if you missed it ; ) Now updates twice a week !**

 **o.O.o**

 **Anilover : Just a little bit : ) Yea, that idea comes from that MK scene where Kaito switches masks as fast as sound (and ends with Aoko's face xD) and that one where he superglued his mask... I liked those ideas so I mixed them : ) Haha... I already said in my former fics I'd stop saying I'm sorry about those xD Good news is that I'm now publishing twice a week ; )**

 **emmahoshi : Ah, if you had an account, you could follow those unexpected publications ^^ I warned last Sunday I'd update twice a week but I wasn't sure when... now, it's settle : ) Nah, they were three (at least) to kick him before he even thought about feeling guilty so, apart from slight embarrassment, I'd say that case is settled, for both Heiji and Kaito. I liked the idea, Kaito's mum was pretty good before, she deserves to shine ! ; ) Hmm I think they are so focused about his mission now that it was just about helping him. After all, he's fighting some criminal organization, so freeing him from jail is just a small concession to a bigger mission : ) I also prefer coffee with a bit of milk (unless I'm dead tired^^;;) but, for having tasted a lot, I can tell you it's worth a try, some are pretty good. Choco is great but it won't keep you awake ; ) Ah, an old good cliff to finish a chapter is the best, right ? xD**

 **JazayZ : Haha, come on, you already forgot that side of me after one cliff-less chapter ? ; ) Hmm, among the bad guys in Kaito, my fav are Delon (he's mad o.O), Chat Noir (she's so classy : ) ) and probly his robot double xD And of course Snake and non-canon Spider but that's the MKO doesn't count ;) Ah, sorry, I made you slip about a astory of yours... xD "A lot of sun in Paris" is the stone full name. But you're right, I didn't see him in any fiction I think... :O But I'm not reading a lot of MK ones, maybe that's because of that ! Oh, nice : ) I want holidays too, mine are already months away ._.**

 **Great : Hey, that's part of their job, right ? ; )**

 **Lady Paper : Oh, no worries, I'll finish that story : ) I love cliffhangers but I clearly don't plan to leave my readers in the middle of one ^^;;; That's also why I always have a few chapters written beforehand. So I'm sure I'll have enough time to find a way out of any crazy cliff I could imagine xD**

* * *

 **Chapter 6 : Out !**

* * *

Kaito was starting to panic a bit, staring at the gun's barrel in front of him, when the moment he was waiting for finally came. With a smile, he saw the man in front of him let go of his weapon to put his hands on his ears, visibly in pain, as a shrilling noise echoed in the whole headquarters.

 _"Thanks, Kaa-san..."_ He thought, rolling his eyes with relief as he removed his handcuffs in a swift move of the wrists and threw them to the man's face.

The detectives' plan had been to pull out a diversion to let him escape and Chikage had proposed to sneak into the speakers' room to send a high-pitched recording to neutralize most of the policemen. Of course, everyone on the team had some protective earplugs, Kaito included, courtesy of his mother as she helped him with the masks.

Hakuba was in charge to coordinate everything to the second and he was being perfect in that role, time was his hobby after all.

With one last kick at his aggressor, Kaito threw himself in the stairs : he had only two minutes to meet the blond-haired detective in the main hall so standing idly in the MPD wasn't an option.

Panting as he finally reached his destination, he winked at Hakuba as he passed just near him, the man still being with the inspector, and prepared himself for his little act.

The shrieking noise finally stopped and Saguru, just as if he was recovering from it, winced on his feet and took advantage of the fact Nakamori was still dizzy to grab his weapon.

"- Everyone on the floor ! Stop it, Kid, don't try to run away, I don't want to have to shoot ! " He warned, raising the gun to point it at the Thief's head.

After making sure no one was too close of him, Kaito stopped and smirked at the detective with a contemptuous voice. "Like you would, _Tantei-chan_ !"

For an answer, the half brit pushed the trigger, though he was being cautious in aiming a spot at a dozen of centimetres of the Kid's face.

The magician nevertheless touched his cheek, as if he'd been grazed, using his small blade to pierce the first mask.

"- But... I knew it, it was a mask after all !

\- Nicely guessed, _jeune détective_ , though you really took your time, I'm really disappointed your lot didn't manage to see through that mask, that Spider wasn't overselling his skills in the end, when he said he was good... " The Thief smirked, his voice changing as he removed his mask with visible difficulty to show the Delon's face below.

"- You ?!" Nakamori spurted when he recognized the face of that agent of an old case, a man a bit too enthusiastic with guns, shooting everything he could aim at. "But what the..." He stuttered, perfectly aware of the fact that the European wasn't the Kid, for seeing both fight each other quite violently.

"- Nakamori... If you knew how I would have liked to muddy your reputation, forcing everyone to believe your son-in-law was the Kid and framing him for murder... But it didn't completely work like planned...Let's say it was that Spider's fault, I'll feel less guilty in letting him rot in jail..." The man shrugged, before moving again. "Well, I'll taking my leave, _détective_ !

\- Stop him ! " Hakuba yelled while the 'fake' Thief was running outside, not able to shot with the witnesses on the way, just rushing after him, Nakamori not far away as he understood he'd been tricked.

"- Catch him, he's a damn murderer ! " The inspector added, red with anger.

"- _Adieu_ !" Kaito winked to the both of them as he jumped into a car that stopped for him in front of the headquarters, with hidden number plates and its driver wearing a mask.

"- What the heck just happened..." The officer blinked, looking helplessly at the car going away.

o.O.o

"- See anyone behind us ?" Shinichi asked to the Thief, who was looking white despite the fact he hadn't his usual outfit.

"- ... Don't know... Too focused on keeping my lunch in my stomach..." Kaito answered, his teeth clenched, a bit sweating.

"- Oh come on..." The Tokyoite had a quick look to see that, with the crazy speed he was driving to, no one seemed to have managed to follow them.

"- Keep your eyes on the road !" The Thief yelled, grabbing the dashboard as if it was a life-jacket.

"- Hey, relax, you're out...

\- Then slow down...

\- Ok, ok..." The detective said, removing his mask with a smile at the Kid and being less pushy with the accelerator.

"- Don't tell me you drive with Ran like this..." Kaito asked, wondering how the girl could deal with that driving style.

"- Nah, she prefers to drive...

\- I bet.

\- Hey, I'm still better than Kaa-san..." Shinichi pouted.

"- Remind me never to travel with her...

\- Hey, she taught me !

\- That's visible...

\- And that helped you out today..." The Tokyoite pointed out, sticking his tongue at the Thief.

Kaito sighed and took his head in his hands, finally letting his stress out. "Yea, thanks. I didn't think I'd get out of here unarmed...

\- Don't underestimate us !" Shinichi smiled with a little nudge.

"- What a teamwork yea... I might hire you all for my next heist..." Kaito concluded with a little grin.

o.O.o

"- Here, your stuff !" Chikage said as she arrived, throwing the Kid's outfit on her son's lap. "Try to stop leaving your things lying around in such nasty places, Kai..." She added with a smirk.

"- Hai, hai...

\- Are you alright ? You don't look well... They mistreated you ?

\- Nah, it's more related to the trip back..." Kaito admitted, heart still in his mouth, giving a flat glare to the azure-eyed detective who was rubbing the back of his head embarrassingly with a silent laugh.

"- You sure arrived here fast... Even before Aoko-chan and Saguru-kun...

\- Tadaima !" said the cheerful voice of the girl as she opened the door.

"- Okaeri Aoko-chan !"

The blond-haired and the newlywed entered the living room and the girl threw herself at her husband's neck.

"- You baka, you scared me..." She admitted with a low voice, burying her head in Kaito's prisoner's shirt.

"- Hey, everything's good, Aoko..." He said, gently stroking her hairs.

"- Clearly. " Hakuba agreed as he walked towards his friends. "As planned, Nakamori-keibu now believes he had been tricked and he was keeping a fake Kid behind bars... We even succeeded in framing Spider for participating in Heiji-kun's aggression, he'll stay in jail at least for that, until I bring enough proves to have him locked up forever...

\- Good riddance..." Shinichi darkly concluded. "That's an asset of that Organization that'll be missing.

\- Still too many to go..." Kaito whispered, a bit down.

o.O.o

Heiji had a wide smile and let go of his spoon when he saw his three male friends came to visit him on the following afternoon.

"- Hey guys !

\- Hello ! " Shinichi greeted as he entered, echoed by Hakuba and Kuroba. "Hmm I must say I preferred the meal I had to yours..." He mocked as he saw the dishes implied the Osakan mostly had liquid food.

"- Yea, let me out o' there an' fast..." He complained, rollin' his eyes. "I'm not askin' fer takoyaki but at least, they should try ta gimme somethin' I can chew...

\- I'll invite you once you're out, my charge, I can at least do that..." Kaito proposed with a small smile of embarrassment as he shyly approached the bed.

"- Hey, I don' want ta see even a trace o' guilt on yer face ! " Heiji commanded, after eyeing his friend to see how he looked, as he didn't want him to charge himself too much with what happened. "I'm good, this wound was nothin' too serious, it's just the gas that made me faint... So I won' accept a meal out o' pity." Seeing his friend's face, he added with a wink." Though, well, if one o' my pals want ta invite me, I'm not goin' ta say 'no' ta a free meal...

\- Great, we'll do that." The magician smiled with relief.

"- When are you supposed to go out ?" Saguru asked, grabbing the patient's file hung on the Osakan's bed, reading it quickly.

"- Tomorrow. It's just as ya said on the phone that night. The wound in the lung closed durin' the drainin' so now it's just about restin' a bit an' I'll be as good as new !

\- Everything is normal, indeed." The blond-haired concluded, putting back the file. "I was slightly afraid of complications, after that other punctured lung you had 4 years ago but this doesn't seem to be the case.

\- Pity for you then, you won't be able to flirt with all those nurses much more longer then..." Shinichi pointed out with a smirk.

"- Nah, it's ok, got some phone numbers already..." Heiji grinned with pride.

"- Don't say that too loud..." Kaito commented with a low voice as he heard some precipitated footsteps outside and he was sure he recognized the panting just near the door, assurance also given by the fact he knew Kudô called her.

He stepped aside just in time to see the door slammed in and a ponytailed girl rushing in.

"- HEIJIIII ! "

The Osakan threw the darkest glare possible to his best friend who was already snorting with laughter.

"- I can' believe ya called her, ya traitor…" He hissed between his teeth so only Shinichi could hear him.

"- You should know by now I'm a big fan of your couple and will do my best to help you solve this up… " The Tokyoite explained with a smirk, before patting his friend. "Time for us to leave guys !

\- Yea, still got some work on my side…" The Thief added, knowing he had to pay a visit to the MPD headquarters to retrieve his fingerprints and erase the file.

The half-brit waved, a smile on the face as he looked at the two Osakan when he left, the two other boys on his heels.

"- Come on, sit down, now ya made everyone go away, there are plenty o' empty chairs… " He invited Kazuha, seeing she was still short-breathed after what had probably been a run through half the city.

"- I didn't want ta...

\- Yea, yea, I guess.

\- How are ya ? " The girl asked, looking at him with worry.

"- I'm good, I'm good, I'm even leavin' tomorrow !

\- But Shinichi told me... " She started, shaking as she remembered the azure-eyed detective's call, to inform her the dark-skinned was at the hospital and how worried she had been.

"- It's nothin' serious, okay ? " He tried, though quickly sighed as he saw Kazuha was clearly not believing him. "Here, look by yerself ! " Heiji added, opening his shirt, short-tempered at the look she was giving him.

The girl approached and touched his skin with the tip of her fingers, just near the impressive bruise that was starting to appear but, indeed, the bandage was barely 2 square centimetres. She looked at his eyes to be sure she wasn't hurting him. Seeing how close she was, she blushed, a bit embarrassed, and so did he.

"- Happy ? " The detective asked, closing clumsily his shirt with his ears red.

"- Not completely..." Kazuha said with a low voice, her eyes still fixed on his, her face still pretty close. With a swift move, she stole a kiss from his lips. "Better now."

The Osakan girl stepped away, a bit surprised herself by her gesture, which was perhaps more of a reflex after 4 years together than an intentional move but she wasn't regretting it, above all as she felt Heiji didn't fight to avoid that kiss.

He was even still a bit blushing, though it was hard to tell with his dark-skin.

"- You better come back ta the apartment tomorrow. I'm not working before next month, I'll babysit ya, ya apparently don't know how ta properly take care of yerself..."

The Osakan looked at her, trying to determine what his answer would be, knowing it was the time for him to decide on what he'd do after that chat they had before the heist. "... Ok.

\- Good." Kazuha concluded with a bright smile, gently stroking his cheek.

* * *

o.O.o One week later o.O.o

* * *

"- So, how's the girl ?" Shinichi asked with a confident smile, turning to the Kid who came to the office for a check-up of his wounded hand by the blond-haired.

"- What girl?" Kaito denied as Saguru got a pair of gloves out to examine him.

"- Come on, I know you just checked on her... You went as a nurse, like for the other last time ?"

Kaito looked at his friend before sighing in defeat. "She's good. Apparently that was just a scratch...

\- Please refrain from visiting the hospital I'll be interning in in such an outfit, Kaito-kun..." The half brit flatly stated as he took his material to remove the Thief's stitches.

"- An' " _please refrain_ " from disguisin' in one o' mines..." Heiji laughed, getting his head out of his paperwork to look at the Kid with a smirk. "I'd like ta receive proper medication, not some magic potion ya'll make appear from nowhere...

\- I already did...

\- No way, which one ?!" The Osakan asked, paling a bit.

"- You'll never know... " The indigo-eyed retorted maliciously. He then raised his hand to look at Saguru's work when he let him go. "Thanks, I couldn't feel anything...

\- It implies my work was correctly done and this is hardly surprising. But you should try not to hurt your hands, they are your precious asset after all..." Hakuba pointed out with a slightly scolding look.

"- I'll try not to get hurt at all but... Starts to be hard lately, I can't believe those bastards even fired in the crowd...

\- They seem pretty desperate, eh ?" Shinichi asked, thinking about those two heists his friend went through this last week, after he escaped from the MPD.

The Organization didn't even hesitate in involving the public and the policemen, shooting randomly in the Thief's direction as if they didn't care.

"- With the Volley comet passing next week, this is their last chance before another 10 000 years... That's also why I can't stop looking for Pandora but when I see how aggressive they've been lately... I don't want anyone to be hurt during my heists, and it was only by pure luck we only had two passerby slightly injured...

\- I call that "skills", yer pure luck, Kaito, no one can say ya're not doin' yer best ta protect yer public... Ya even do the hospital visit.

\- He's right, you know..." Shinichi added, patting his friend.

"- Oy, Saguru, this one's fer ya !" Heiji said, taking a letter out of the pile of case requests he was sorting out. "Ack, once again someone who sent money, I'll never get used ta it..." He said with a disgusted frown at the bills falling outside the envelop he just opened.

"- Hey, time for you to get used being paid, you're not a high school detective anymore, Heiji, we got a loan now..." The Tokyoite pointed out with a smirk as the blond-haired took the mail and read it. "What's that about, Saguru ?

\- An old friend... I guess this will interest you also, Kaito-kun..." Hakuba said, a mysterious expression on his face when he turned to the Thief.

"- Ah ? A common acquaintance ?

\- Exactly. Koizumi Akako.

\- Oh Kami..." The Kid sighed, bringing his hand to his face with a bored expression. "Just when I thought this week couldn't be any worse..."

* * *

 **It isn't clearly said in the manga that Delon is French but... With his name, the name of the jewel... I've always seen him like this : ) So I had him (well, Kaito ; ) ) speak a bit french ^^**


	7. Chapter 7 - Haunted Manor

**Heya for the next chapter : )**

 **Let's dive a bit deeper in Akako's world ! ; )**

 **(I should have kept those chapters for Halloween, would have been funnier xD)**

 **o.O.o**

 **Laury Rose : Wow 3 reviews ? :O That's quite the catch up xD Chap 4 : Yup, alive and kicking! : ) Hmm, yea, it was a bit easy, don't you think... ? *evil smile* Oh yea, that's going to happen pretty soon, careful Shinichi, Ran is going to be angry xD Chap 5 : Haha, nah, they didn't but never underestimate Kaito... or his mother ; ) Yea, I like the idea of a Shinichi who had his mother's skills that rubbed on him ^^ And see how he ca be a drama queen as Conan, of course he'd still be able to as Shinichi xD Uhh since you read 3 chapters in a row, I guess my hypnosis is a bit too high, still xD Chap 6 : Happy, of course, yes ! :D I don't think we ever saw Shin / Conan try to drive... So was fun to imagine him as bad (or shouldn't we say gifted ? xD) as his mother ^^ Maa, of course, Shin is their biggest fan, see how he encourages them as Conan in the manga ! ; ) But yea, he waited a bit til Heiji was a bit more in shape, he knew he'd need loads of energy to deal with Kazuha xD Yea, I was motivated enough to start the French translation ; )**

 **YJV : Thanks you ! : )**

 **crimson sana : Naaah, better tell you that now, I know it's usual to pair those 2 in the MK fandom so they don't end as singles but that's a no go for me. I can't picture a Cartesian as Hakuba to be able to pair with a witch as Akako. Even her existence is something his mind can't comprehend so I don't see anything that could bring them together. The only thing they have in commun is their egocentrism and that doesn't help pairing people, not at all. And with Akako being able to charm the boys, wouldn't there always be the question of him being willingly with her or not ? And since she has a thing on Kaito also, how to be sure she doesn't turn to Hakuba out of heartache ? Nah, I've seen some nice stories with that couple but that's too many impossibilities for me, sorry : )**

 **Anilover : Yup, a bit of Akako for next adventure ; ) Ah, this comes from the Spider Mansion case : Heiji explains he goes all the way there to solve the case, of course, but also to give the money back to the guy. That's where he says he'll never accept even a cent as a high school detective and will not get paid for solving a case. So I wanted to refer a bit to that : after serval years saying "no" to money, I imagined it would be a bit hard for him to get used to being paid : )**

 **emmahoshi : Ah, well, he's always been obsessed with it, right ? ; ) Ah, I used only easy words, I'll put 'subtitles' if one day I want more french in my stories xD I won't complain about that, Poirot can speak as much french as he wants xD Ah yea, but he had no choice, eh ? And a crazy speedy driver is the one you need to escape the police so he has to deal with it and be grateful :p Hmm it's just that when you talk about life-endangering wounds, it's always about chest's wounds (well except the ones with extreme bleeding) so yea, I guess I love lungs for that xD Was fun having Hakuba mentioning it, it brought a reference to the former story : ) Hmm let's say it's getting better between the both of them, I wouldn't say it's for the best yet. But yea, those two love each other, that's sure but with their clumsiness sand their fear to hurt the other, I don't think it would be easy everyday for them^^; Yup, no good will come from Akako xD This chap is... a bit cliffy, but nothing too hard ; )**

 **JarayZ : Ah well, my chapters are around 2k-3k words so yes, some can end quicker : ) Yes, I wonder... Maybe by his looks ? :p Lol, yea, let's say it was intentional xD Yup, it was fun mentioning both mothers, I know our heroes are adults but our parents influence our grown up's lives more than we could imagine ; ) Of course, I HAD to feature Akako in that story, she's a big part of MK and indeed, she probably knows or can learn far more than the others about Pandora : ) Ah, we're speaking of Akako the great red witch, she's due to be portrayed as a badass, at least by me xD**

* * *

 **Chapter 7 - Haunted Manor**

* * *

"- Oh, this place is so gorgeous !" Ran said as she saw the old mansion at the end of the alley she was walking on, a crimson colour on its high walls with the last rays of the evening sun.

"- Totally ! Looks like it's coming out from an old European movie !" Kazuha agreed with a delighted face.

"- Don't forget it's supposed to be full of ghosts..." Shinichi reminded her with a malicious smirk.

"- Killer ghosts even... Ya sure ya'll be able ta spend a night here ? "Heiji added, mirroring his best friend's expression.

"- Uhhh stop it..." The long-haired girl pledged, her happy face fading quickly.

"- Ya both know we don't like those..." The female Osakan scolded, stopping to take her friend's hand, as if each could protect the other of the cold chill that ran along their spines.

"- Eh, ya could've said no... I told ya ta, it could be dangerous...

\- What about ya ? Ya're barely healed... And didn't ya said yerself the client encouraged ya ta bring more people ?

\- She said 'useful people'...

\- What are ya implying ?!"

Kaito smiled as he saw from behind the two Osakan snapping at each other, back so soon to normal after just a few days of cohabitation. He was walking a bit behind the four friends, with Aoko and Saguru by his side.

"- So ? What did she really ask for, Saguru ?

\- Exactly as I said previously. She asked for both your and my help me and anyone we trusted and who could be strong enough to defend himself. I guess I understand now why she needed some additional manpower, this place seems indeed quite wide...

\- What was the problem you said ? Something about someone stalking her ?" Aoko asked with worry for her former classmate.

"- Not exactly..." The blond-haired answered, taking his notebook out. "This place is a heritage, from an old aunt apparently. Before that woman died a few years ago, two of her maids disappeared. Koizumi-san didn't pay attention to these rumours and settled here ten days ago but her servant has also gone missing. She waited a bit but the girl didn't come back, neither here nor by her family, she therefore started to worry...

\- I'm a bit surprised she couldn't solve this by herself..." Kaito pointed out, aware of her powers and wondering with apprehension what kind of formidable opponent could trick that magic of hers.

"- Well, she's living alone, you can't ask an ordinary girl to play hide and seek with a what could be a killer ! " His wife stated with a "but-that's-so-obvious" face as she turned to him.

 _"Haha, she's no ordinary girl..."_ The Thief snorted in his mind, amused to imagine the witch's face if Aoko told her she was "ordinary".

"- She didn't seem the type that can be scared easily to me..." Hakuba stated, having noticed the girl wasn't someone to meddle with though he couldn't pinpoint why he felt that way.

The blond haired eyed the door, noticing with a small grimace it had been decorated with very bad taste, the wood panel being recovered by what looked like carved miniature skulls.

"- Dear, that's cliché..." He pointed out as a crow flied over them, cawing in the evening's sky.

"- Clearly... " Heiji smiled, seeing the two female friends were getting closer and closer, noticing that the "beautiful manor" was looking more and more like a haunted house now that they were close to it and the sun was setting.

"- Anyone's here ?" Aoko asked, knocking on the door vigorously.

The door slowly opened on a small old man in a suit, with slicked-back hair and a curved back. His face was less than pleasant when he eyed the group in front of the door.

"- Good evening." The half-brit stated, being the first to be able to go over the repulsion that seized them as they saw the man. "My name is Hakuba Saguru, I'm a detective, Koizumi-san hired my services.

\- I am aware of it. Come in, young lords and ladies..." He said with a small bow, his face barely lighter now that he knew who the intruders were. " Ojou-sama is waiting for you in the morning room."

Most of them jumped when the door closed with a loud noise, blocking the last rays of the sun, leaving them with only the faint light of some old bulbs here and there, as if made on purpose to strengthen the gloomy atmosphere.

The group followed the old man, coming closer to each other unconsciously as they crossed the house's hallways, its decoration matching the doors', with old armours in the corners, dark-coloured tapestries and apparent stones on all walls, old paintings, mostly centred around the theme of fire, with flames on almost each canvas. Some had more... suggestive subjects, mature ones even for a few.

 _"That's a red witch for you..."_ Kaito smirked in his mind.

Though he wondered how Akako could have changed the decoration of the place so fast for it to match to her tastes... Or was it like that before ?

It was with a visible relief that Kazuha and Ran reached the morning room, with its gentle light and its fireplace lightened even in summer but, with its humidity, the place was as cold as a cave and it was clearly needed.

"- Good evening... ?" Ran tried, clearing her throat to bring some strength in her voice to greet the woman sitting in an armchair facing the flames, back turned to them.

"- Oh, good evening !" The black-haired said with a warm voice, getting up to welcome her guests.

Heiji and Shinichi stayed with their mouths opened as the woman came closer to them with a faint smile on her face. They had already met her, at Kaito's wedding, but the girl was even more stunning in the red flickering light of the fireplace, her mysterious and mature aura even more reinforced. Her face was perfect, with her almond shaped brown, almost red, eyes, and her lips of a deep red, like a cherry. Her long jet black hairs were falling along her back, reaching her hips now, emphasizing their curves, fluttering with her every move like some black velvet. Akako had grown in a very gorgeous woman and she knew it.

"- Hum..." Kaito coughed, feeling most of his male friends were fascinated by the witch, trying to have their attention before they humiliated themselves any further in front of the girls they loved. "Hello Akako, it's been a long time ! I don't know if you remember my friends so I'll introduce them again : here are Kudô Shinichi and Hattori Heiji, they are sharing an office with Saguru now. And their respective girlfriends, Mouri Ran and Tôyama Kazuha." He pointed with the hand every person he named, and was glad to see the sound of his voice had gotten his friends out of their daydream.

"- Nice to see you again..." The witch smiled, after an exchange of nods. "And thank you all for coming to help. I thought it would be more pleasant to talk around a meal, so, if you don't mind, let's move to the dining room. You can leave your belongings here, Igor will bring them to your respective rooms later."

The group did as told and started to follow the small man, trying not to leave too much distance, a bit afraid to get lost in such a wide place.

"- Hmm, Akako, a word please ? " Kaito asked with a smile of embarrassment as he saw the others left the room and she was going to follow them.

"- Isn't it a bit early for that, Kaito ? I know I'm irresistible but..." She winked, her tone clearly implying she was talking about nightly occupations... mature ones.

"- Tsk, I'm a married man now... And don't forget your charm doesn't work on me..." The Thief snorted with a smirk.

"- Mah, it's ok, I'll have fun with your friends... That Kudô really looks like you, I could...

\- Akako..." Kaito sighed, looking at her with bored eyes.

"- I don't need your permission you know..." She added with a malicious smile.

"- And you don't want to angry Ran... Powers or not, her kicks are strong enough to break stones, not to mention your head...

\- Oh, I like a good challenge..."

The indigo-eyed facepalmed with boredom. He knew she was just taunting him but she could be pretty tiring sometimes. "I guess you didn't hire Saguru only to find new preys to add to your list of conquests... What's that about ?

\- As I said to Hakuba-kun..." The witch started with a darker face. "I very probably have a murderer under my roof and I'd like to get rid of him. But, since I couldn't find any corpse, the police wouldn't come... Detectives were the best option and I happened to know one...

\- You couldn't find him with those powers of yours ?" Kaito asked, a bit surprised, knowing the extent of the girl's abilities.

"- I tried but... Well, this house is the one of my former mentor and the red magic is pretty strong here. It seems to interfere with my powers. Randomly strengthen them or weaken them...

\- Oh, that explains why the decoration was fitting you so well after only 10 days here..." The Thief smiled, remembering what he thought when he stepped first in the place. "Could it be another witch ?

\- I don't know... Clearly not one of my kind, sacrifices are useless to red witches, it's clearly more efficient with a consenting victim and ... Well... A long night to absorb some vital energy in the most agreeable way possible..." Akako said with a wink. "Only black magic implies sacrifices and they are pretty rare... Seeing how the culprit moves in the house, using the secret passages by night to steal food or kidnap... I'd say it's an ordinary human, familiar to the place, perhaps part of the former staff. But I clearly can't cover that place by myself, and with my maid who disappeared, I had to do something...

\- So you called us...

\- Yes. Detectives should be able to do a great work in finding the secret passages I don't know... Though I didn't expect you to bring any girl, I thought you'll bring more firepower... This could be dangerous, with someone who very probably killed at least three persons...

\- Oh don't worry. Ran has her karate, as I told you. Kazuha is as good as her but in Aikido and Aoko... Well, you know her and her... delicacy, she's able to defend herself..." The Thief finished with a proud smile.

"- Haha, I'm not sure that's really a compliment for a woman...

\- It is for my wife, and she knows I mean that as one when I say it..." He denied, not losing his smile.

"- What a pair... Well, if we're finished with that little chat, let's head to the dining room ?"

o.O.o

After a last thank to Igor for his surprisingly more than appreciable cooking, the group settled back in the morning room, the girls chatting together and the boys speaking about the case with the witch.

"- So, apparently this place has quite the reputation..." Shinichi started, getting his notes out. "And that before even the kidnappings occurred...

\- Ah well, my... aunt was a bit loony and solitary, so I don't think it helped... I bet she was accused to eat children or things like that ?

\- To be honest, it was more about a... kinky side of her..." Saguru admitted, slightly blushing as he remembered the articles he could read.

"- Haha, look at that cherry boy..." Heiji laughed at the half brit's face, noticing his embarrassment.

"- Says the man who isn't even allowed to drink alcohol or even vote by the law... you're more the "boy" than I am." Hakuba coldly stated with a glare at the Osakan.

"- Gents, you stopped this ages ago, it may sound nostalgic to you to fight but it's annoying to us... " Kaito said with a smirk towards his two friends, wanting to stop them before it ended in one of those quarrels they were so good with.

"- Though there was something about a missing teenager..." The Tokyoite pointed out, back to the main subject. "The manor shouldn't have been yours, Koizumi-san, right ?

\- Indeed, there was a son in the family. I met him a few times... He and Reda-san were disagreeing a lot so one day, ten years ago, he just left. I won't tell you to drive away the idea he could have been one of the victims but I don't think it's really likely.

\- Or ya could have killed him ta have the house...

\- Of course. And I asked you all to come to bury you near his body..." Akako stated with irony at the Osakan's remark.

"- That was perhaps a bit straightforward, Heiji... " Shinichi sighed with a grin of apology. "The fact remains that, after ten years, he has been officially declared as dead, according to the law, and the house was legated to you, that's it ?

\- Exactly.

\- Could you describe the supposed victims ?

\- When Reda-san was living here, she told me she lost two of her maids, one was 24, the other 18. Mine is 19. The three of them were efficient and discreet workers, not far away of what I'd call 'pretty'. Not the kind to have problems. They disappeared at night, but the police didn't accept to come and investigate due to the lack of proves that they had been kidnapped and - or murdered. I don't think anything happened here during the 10 years no one lived in the house but I didn't really bother to ask the neighbouring villages.

\- Noted..." The blond-haired nodded. "I suppose you haven't any map of that place ?

\- I could roughly draw the main hallways but as to hidden passages... I know some but I'm sure there are many others.

\- We'll take the sketches." Heiji accepted : incomplete or not, they would help them to find their way here, the place being too big for them to master all the corridors in one single night.

"- How do you want to proceed ?" Kaito wondered, turning to look at Akako.

"- I was thinking in making two groups, me on one side with the master key and maybe you on the other, your... magician's skills should do a great work to open the doors if you're stuck somewhere. And we'll dispatch the detectives in the groups, to find the hidden entrances...

\- Sounds good to me." Shinichi agreed. "I suppose we won't be able to use our phones to stay in touch ?

\- No, sorry. The phone network doesn't work well in this mountain, so behind these walls of stones, nothing can go through.

\- Great..." Heiji sighed, knowing that'd mean they'd have to stay in packs as a safety measure, unless they wanted to get lost in the place and that would mean lose a lot of time in the search.

"- I'll be drawing some maps, just in case we get separated, though I hope it doesn't happen. We'll be leaving soon after."

o.O.o

"- Did anything happen ?" Ran asked with a raised brow as she saw that, for the second time, Shinichi looked embarrassed when Aoko accidentally touched him as they walked.

"- Uhh..." Shinichi hesitated, not wanting to lie to her anymore after everything that happened as he was Conan. But he still hadn't been able to talk to her about what happened when Kid got arrested, as he would have been forced to unveil Kaito's secret identity.

"- This is so stupid... " Aoko sighed, rolling her eyes. "I kissed him, that's why.

\- Don't..." The detective wanted to stop her, a bit too late.

"- Shoo ! Go with Kaito at the front, I'm dealing with that. "The magician's wife drove him away with a move of the hand, under Ran's blank expression, unable to believe what she just heard. "No need to beat around the bush, this really starts to annoy me, it's been going for too long.

\- Going for too long... ?" The law student finally managed to articulate, paling several shades as she imagined the worst betrayals.

"- I'm sorry Ran, I didn't want to hurt you or mess with your couple but I had to do it. This was necessary to convince my father that Shinichi was Kaito and this was the most efficient way. So, sorry about that, but if I had to do it again to save Kaito, I would.

\- But why would you... Convince your father ? Where was Kaito ?

\- Kaito was here also, but he was in the Kaitou Kid's clothes.

\- Why would he... ?

\- Because he's the Kid.

\- What ?!" The long-haired girl looked at the other with eyes wide with startle, as she was trying to process the information.

"- Sorry we hid it from you. The boys and I found out 4 years ago and decided not to speak about it. It was stupid finally, there was really no need, we should have trusted you back then.

\- And your father ? Does he ...

\- He's the only one who should never hear about that. It would hurt him so much..." Aoko admitted with a small guilty smile.

Ran looked at her, silent, her head full of questions, not really knowing how she should react.

"- Kaito has his reasons... Good ones. You can ask Shinichi for more information."

The girl turned her head to look at her boyfriend who had stopped a bit further and was looking at her with expectation, expression Kaito seemed to mirror.

She felt some anger, of being tricked once more, and to learn it because Aoko had...

"- Shin. !" She growled, coming closer to him, seeing with satisfaction the detective was stepping back and now leaning against the wall, trying to look as small as possible as she approached him.

"- Ran, I..." The Tokyoite stopped as the girl slammed her fist against the stones just near his head with a menacing glare.

He couldn't finish his sentence as he felt something moved in his back, and he slid on the floor, taking Ran with him, as the panel he was leaning against turned on itself.

A cloud of dust erupted as they hit the floor and they coughed, unable to see anything.

"- Ran, are you ok ?" Shinichi was finally able to ask, rubbing the dust out of his crying eyes to look at his girlfriend.

"- Yea..." She coughed, rolling on the side as she was still on the top of the detective.

He smiled at her with relief, but saw her expression wasn't encouraging. "Hey, I'm sorry but this secret wasn't mine, I couldn't...

\- Blame it on me if you want..." Kaito said as he approached them, holding his hand to help the woman on her feet.

"- I'm indeed not finished with you..." Ran said, eyeing him with a cold look, though she nevertheless took his stretched hand. "But since I found this secret passage way, let's focus on that."

Shinichi got up and switched his old good torch-light watch on, to give them a bit of light. He carefully walked into the passageway, after checking the others were following him.

The floor was dusty but there were some footprints here and there, clearly indicating the way was in use and that very recently.

"- Be cautious... Someone is using this passage..." The Tokyoite warned his friends.

Following the trail of steps for a while, the group finally went down a tiny staircase, and ended in a gloomy place, with a few doors, some opened, some closed, but the place was giving the chills to everyone, even if they couldn't pinpoint why...

Shinichi tested a door but was unable to open it. "Kaito ?

\- I'm on it..." The Thief said, grabbing some tools in his pocket to force the door.

It opened on a creaking noise, and the detective stepped in, using his light to see the inside, Ran near him, ready to defend them if they met anyone.

Feeling something against his shoe, the Tokyoite lowered his watch and stopped, an icy chill along his spine at the sight of what was near his foot.

He wasn't apparently the only one to have noticed what was on the floor, according to Ran's horrified yell, echoing in the whole passage way.

* * *

 **I don't think Akako's servant had a name, so I made it up… Igor is really the name of all dark forces' servants xD**


	8. Chapter 8 - Symbols

**Heya !**

 **Hmm things will start to get a bit more serious with today's chapter... Let's go deeper in that mystery ! ; )**

 **o.O.o**

 **Anilover : Naah, it's thanks to Akako, she makes things interesting xD But still, thanks ; ) The last one... ? You mean the reason of Ran's cry ? :p Answer in that chapter : )**

 **Laury Rose : Aaah, crap, I'm doing my best though... Sorry, but it seems you'll have to deal with it :p Yep, nice timing for Ran's revenge, just when you asked and then, tadaaa ! Uh, I corrected it... The auto-correct doesn't like 'witch' too much and try to turn it into 'which' every time I close my eyes ._. Oh, a theory ! :3 You'll see chapter 10 if you were right ; ) Ah, well, Ran is a nice girl... Right ?^^ And I guess that the shock to learn Kaito is Kaitou kind of stopped her to think about the kiss too much xD Hmmm this chapter being full of action, it even hypnotizes me so I'm not sure you'll resist xD**

 **crimson sana : Haha, well, that's how I see it... I already got a 'messy' pair in that story, no need to add a second one xD Hmm I guess your questions being only slightly spoilerish, I'll answer them. Yes, Akako will have a role later. These chapters are just me introducing her to my fic (and it turned out to be a nice case so I'm glad :3). No, having Vermouth in that story would have been too messy with her already appearing in U.A.'s epilogue 10 years after. There'll be other characters to help them : ) Thank you ! ; )**

 **emmahoshi : Ah nah, 21 is awfully young to get married, no ?^^ I don't know a lot of people who marry around that age, they usually wait for being settled and have a work and only Aoko & Kaito were in that position. So only them are married : ) Well, there isn't a lot of suspense about that, right ? They are looking for someone, so it's very probably a body, only question is dead or alive :p Yup, as I said, I know at least 2 books and one movie with a Igor as a servant : ) It was funnier to have them together, right ? ; ) And Heiji and Hakuba should be in the same group, the one who gets always hurt and the medic have to be together xD**

 **YJV : Yea, I like an old good mystery from time to time :D**

* * *

 **Chap 8 : Symbols**

* * *

"- Someone reminds me why we split the group like this ?" Heiji said with a bored voice, eyeing Hakuba who was chatting with Koizumi a bit further in front of him.

"- Shouldn't ya be happy ? Ya seem ta find her pretty..." Kazuha pouted, remembering how the Osakan looked at the girl when she welcomed them.

"- Rubbish..." He retorted, rubbing the back of his head with embarrassment.

He couldn't explain why but, yes, he had felt a kind of attraction when he saw Akako. Now that her eyes were not on him anymore, it was lighter but there was that kind of... almost unnatural magnetism when she looked at you.

 _"Better be cautious..."_ Heiji thought, not wanting to start another quarrel with Kazuha so soon after they finally lived again under the same roof.

"- Ok, here we are." The witch said as she stopped in front of an old statue. "Hakuba-kun, could you push it ? It's a bit heavy to me. Both hands on the chest should do the trick."

The Osakan snorted at the half-brit's face, clearly reluctant, though he obeyed with a dark glare at the other detective, as to prove to him it wasn't a problem.

Akako hid her smile behind her hand, amused at the blond-haired embarrassment, and entered the passage she led them to.

"- Let's try to stay packed, this passage is wide and even I don't know how far it can go..."

Kazuha came closer to Heiji, looking for his hand to hold it, and forced herself to breathe as she walked through the entrance, impressed by its darkness.

The Osakan squeezed her hand and took his phone out to use it as a torch and lighten the way.

o.O.o

"- Wait for me outside Ran, ok ?" Shinichi said, gently stroking her cheek to soothe her.

The girl nodded and turned to look elsewhere, just anywhere else than in the skeletons direction.

The detective took his handkerchief out and started to look at the remains in front of him. He could identify four skulls, and, more or less attached to it, the bodies going along with them. There was some remains of cloths and hairs, indicating the corpses had been here for a while but less than 20-30 years : even if the air was still enough to conserve efficiently the bones, there would have been more damages if it had stayed longer.

The remaining clothes had nothing encouraging, with their brownish stains, more or less important, clearly indicating a long captivity and probably a painful death. With a gulp, the detective took a bone in his handkerchief, to look at it in his watch's light, and noticed the small marks, indicating the wounds had been deep enough to damage the bones.

 _"Painful indeed..."_ He frowned in his mind.

"- Shinichi ?" The Tokyoite felt Kaito's hand on his shoulder. "You... you'll want to see that.

\- Are you ok, Kaito ?" The detective asked as he got up, noticing the boy was clearly white, even in the faint light.

"- Well, this is clearly your line of work... And that means it's clearly not mine..."

The Thief led him in the nearby room, shaking his head to the interrogative faces from Aoko and Ran : surely, they would not want to see that.

"- Just wait near the door, better stay close to each other..." Kaito advised them.

Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath before heading once again inside the room, where Shinichi already stepped in.

"- Well, that settles the question of those disappearances being intentional or not..." The detective concluded as he heard the Kid's footsteps.

"- ... Clearly.

\- Would you happen to have some gloves with you ?

\- ... You're not using my Kaitou Kid's gloves to inspect a corpse, Shinichi..."

Two minutes later, after challenging each other's look, the Tokyoite was examining the body in front of him with gloved hands. The girl had been laid on a table and, based on the rigor mortis, she'd been dead since less than 24 hours.

"- So he keeps them about a week...

\- "He" ?

\- We are apparently facing a serial murderer and most are male. And I didn't see any proof of a body dragged from this room to the other so, if he kills them here and move them over there, it means he carries them. That would be really hard for a woman.

\- Ok... What... killed her ?

\- Probably a stab, in the chest area... the bleeding seems to have been quite important around there..." Shinichi said, circling a zone upon her chest with his finger. "I wonder if...

\- Oy, what are you doing ?!" Kaito spurted as he saw his friend was rolling the corpse on the side.

"- That hit was so hard it almost pierced her through and through..." He concluded, impressed. "Definitively a man. And a strong one...

\- Better call the police then... But... what are those ?" The Thief asked, noticing some white lines half hidden in the dried blood.

"- Looks like... Some cabalistic symbols ? Those circles are characteristics... And the decoration seems to be matching this kind of tastes..." The detective stated, letting the body down and looking at his surroundings with the light of his watch.

"- So we're looking for a strong sicko ? Encouraging..."

 _"Akako, what's that mess you've brought us in ?"_ Kaito swore in his mind, still a bit sick.

o.O.o

"- Eh, wait a sec, I feel somethin'..." Heiji said, letting go of Kazuha's hand to put his on the wall. "There's some kind o' cold air comin' from around here..."

Akako took her torch to lighten the area the Osakan was in and, indeed, she could see some irregularities which, if you squinted hard enough, could look like a door. "If there's a switch, it shouldn't be far away...

\- What about... this ?" Saguru said, turning a small metal decoration in the wall, probably a support for a torch.

And, yes, the ground started to shake a little and the wall moved, revealing another staircase.

"- This one I didn't know about..." The witch stated as she looked at the entrance. "Should we go in ?

\- Isn' it tonight's purpose ?" Heiji grinned, taking the lead, more and more interested by the old mansion and its hidden passages.

The group went down the stairs and, after following a narrow hallway, ended in a very spacious room, with a high ceiling and various decorations on the walls and, what was even more surprising, a cauldron in the middle.

The group parted to search the room, and Akako frowned as she walked towards the metallic item, recognizing a cauldron not really different from the one she could use to summon Lucifer. Though, she felt it as she let her hand on it, the thing was charged with tremendous power...

"- Akako ?

\- Hmm ?" The girl, captivated by the item, didn't realise the boys had been talking and the blond-haired called her so she walked to them.

"- Heiji-kun was saying he found some food remains, mostly canned food thought.

\- Those are part of the reserve, we are keeping them in case the road is blocked by a landslide, as this place is pretty isolated..." She concluded as she looked at the metal box in the Osakan's hand.

"- So that guy probably lives here..." The dark-skinned guessed, looking at the numerous remains in that part and the cover on the floor near it. "Looks like we disturbed him..." He declared as he crouched to touch the improvised bed, feeling it was still warm. "Better be...

\- Hey, I think I got something ! " Kazuha stated with a smile, waving at them with enthusiasm after she pushed an hidden switch.

"- Indeed."

"- What the... ?" She wondered, turning to see to who owned the male voice that came from behind her.

She just had the time to see two small dark nasty eyes before he knocked her down with a quick hit on the side of the neck.

"- Kazuha !" Heiji yelled, letting the can he was holding fall on the ground to rush to the other side of the room, where the man was putting Kazuha on his shoulder and stepping back into the dark.

"- Itadakimasu..." The man said with an evil smile, looking with amusement at the detective running to him, knowing he'd be too late.

As fast as the Osakan had been, the hidden passageway had already closed as he reached the wall.

"- Kazuha !" He called once again, slamming the stone door with his fists.

Noticing it didn't move at all, he tried to look for the switch she used. The two others came to help him and, within seconds, Saguru, who was trying to keep his calm to balance the dark-skinned man's worry, touched the correct stone, forcing the door open.

Heiji rushed in, trying to check as fast as he could the many doors in front of him, leaving Akako and Hakuba behind him, forgetting all elementary precaution.

His panicked mind started to think after a few minutes, and he used his phone's light to look for any trace in the dust, deciding to follow one that looked recent, his heartbeat accelerating as he ended in front of another dead end but he knew, according to the footprints, there was another passage just here.

"- Come on..." The Osakan said between his teeth, trying to feel anything under his fingertips.

He suddenly noticed something and pushed it with force, a grin appearing on his face when the wall moved.

Lightening the new corridor with his phone, Heiji saw the girl he loved on the floor, chin on her chest, still unconscious.

"- Kazu..." He started, stepping to reach her, before feeling something hard slammed against his skull, sending him on the floor. "...ha..." He barely finished, his eyes still on her, before being drowned in a lake of darkness.

o.O.o

"- Heiji !"

The Osakan opened an eye to see Hakuba was crouching at him, shaking his shoulder to wake him up. He was lying on the floor, quite unarmed, except for that bump on the side of his head. The detective's eyes widened as he remembered why he was taking an improvised nap on the ground. "Kazuha ! I need ta..." He said, trying to jump on his feet, to be stopped by the blond haired man's hand.

"- Stop being stupid ! It's almost midnight, let's meet the others in the morning room, as planned, and we'll look for Kazuha-kun together.

\- But...

\- Rushing alone is stupid and could have gotten you killed, you bloody idiot !"

Heiji looked at the half brit, a bit startled by his unusual swears and his face red from them, before he understood... He had worried him. Really. And that was understandable : If the guy was really a serial killer, he was alive only by pure luck.

"- ... I'm sorry, Saguru... "He said, putting his own hand on Hakuba's. "Let's do as ya say..."

o.O.o

The four others were already in the room when they came in and there was no need in asking what happened for them to be only three, it was written all over their faces.

"- Kazuha..." Ran said, putting her hand in front of her mouth to hide her shock while Heiji let himself fall in the closest armchair to take his head into his hands.

The blond-haired quickly explained the situation and what happened to the others, and they did the same after, though Shinichi had decided to stay vague as to what kind of wounds he could have found on the victims.

Akako had been doing her best to keep a straight face, she wasn't really expecting her maid to be alive but... The girl was still someone she was used to see every day and she was going to miss her.

Kaito, Aoko and Hakuba approached her to lighten her a bit by changing the subject and discussing about the hidden passages, while the Tokyoite came closer to his best friend, to comfort him with a pat on the shoulder, trying to sound optimistic.

"- Hey, good news, he won't kill her yet, ok ?

\- An' bad news ?" Heiji asked, turning his head at the azure-eyed, feeling he wasn't telling him everything. And indeed, seeing he stayed silent, his green eyes hardened. "Shinichi !"

The detective turned his head, careful not to be heard by the others. "He... is the sadistic kind...

\- Fuckin' bastard..." The dark-skinned hissed between his teeth, clenching his fists.

"- Hey, we'll be leaving to look for her in a minute and don't forget the guy doesn't know what Kazuha is capable of... If he doesn't pay attention, she'll be able to beat him to a pulp and flee... Stop panicking, it won't help..." Shinichi concluded, forcing his friend to open his hands before he carved his nails into his palms.

Hattori breathed and released the tension in his arms, before getting up.

"- Let's go then ? Ya had yer man warn the police, Nee-chan ?

\- Yes, he's calling as we speak. Unfortunately, I don't think they'll be here before one hour or two...

\- Better start looking for Kazuha then, as planned." The Tokyoite stated, ready to go. "I'll lead you to where we found the victims, I think it'll be a good idea to start there."

o.O.o

"- Heiji, I don't think you should see that, you're too emotionally linked to this case..." Kaito tried to stop him as he wanted to go into the room where they found the latest body.

"- I have ta..." He insisted, pushing gently but firmly the Thief.

The Osakan shook as he detailed the corpse, unable to think with his usual detective's detachment when his mind was imagining Kazuha just like this, slowly and painfully killed by a maniac in the middle of nowhere, just because he took her with him in a case...

He got out under his friends comprehensive looks, forcing himself to breathe deeply, and examined the walls at the end of the corridor, not really looking for something, just trying to find himself an occupation which, as insignificant as it could be, was at least helping him to think about something else.

"- Hey, don't you hear something over there ?" Ran asked, taking a fighting pose as she heard some scratching noise behind the wall just to her left, in the room where the skeletons where lying.

All rushed to the girl and tensed in expectation, ready to fight whatever would go through that hidden passage, and finally, a small door, barely one meter high, opened on...

"- Kazuha !" Heiji called, rushing to the girl who was crawling out of the tiny entrance, her face dirt with dust and spider webs and blood, and he absolutely didn't like the fact it looked like it was hers.

"- Heiji..." She stated with relief as she felt his strong arms around her, still shaking of the adrenaline that allowed her to escape. But it was now fading away, leaving her without any strength.

"- It's ok, now, it's ok..." The Osakan softly whispered in her ear, stroking her hair to comfort her, hugging her firmly as she started to sob without a noise.

He gave a look at Hakuba who discreetly crouched to check the girl. She wasn't unharmed but nothing looked serious. As Shinichi guessed, the man looked like he appreciated taking his time, which implied nothing too damaging at the beginning. Kazuha seemed to have a few cuts on the forearms and what was probably a hit to her head was what brought blood to her face but most bleedings appeared to have stopped.

"- Let's bring her up there..." He stated as he got up and dusted off his knees. "I'll be able to tend her wounds, I don't see anything too serious.

\- Thanks..." Heiji said to Saguru before passing his hand under the legs of the girl who was almost limp in his arms, to carry her to the main rooms.

o.O.o

The Osakan and the blond-haired left the room, closing the door behind them with the less noise possible, dark looks on both faces.

"- I've given her a light sedative, she's sleeping now.

\- I'll be staying with her in case she wakes up..." Ran volunteered with a firm voice. "Kick that bastard for me... " She added, a dark look as almost no one had never seen on the usually perfectly calm girl's face.

"- I'll ask Igor to stay near the door, in case you need anything." Akako proposed, showing her man with the hand.

"- Thank you.

\- No need, I feel responsible, you all came here for me..."

Ran had a nod of recognisance to her and walked in the room to watch over her best friend.

"- Could you stay with them, Aoko ? Someone will have to open the door to welcome the police and I don't like the idea of Ran being alone in that room. I'll be cautious, I'll promise." Kaito added when he saw his partner's face.

"- You'd better to...

\- Promise." He finished, putting a gentle kiss on her forehead.

After one last look, the inspector's daughter turned her back to them and followed Ran.

"- How was she ?" Shinichi asked with worry once the girl left, knowing what the man could have been able to.

"- I had to stitch a gash on her arm but most wounds were superficial." Saguru sighed as he removed his gloves. "He hadn't enough time with her to... do anything serious, she's been lucky.

\- Superficial wounds or not, I'm amazed she could escape..." Kaito admitted, impressed by the girl. "Add to this the fact our culprit knows the place like the back of his hand...

\- She apparently could strike a blow when he tried ta tie her after she woke up from that hit that half opened her head... An' when he tried ta catch her, well, feeble or not, Aikido is about usin' the opponent's strength against him an' that's what she did...

\- Any idea of where she had been brought ? " Shinichi asked, a bit wondering what they could do while they were waiting for the police to arrive, in at least 30 more minutes.

"- I think one or two things are missin' but Kazuha described us most o' the passages she went through, we should be able...

\- To find him, yes..." Hakuba finished after exchanging a look with the Osakan.

"- Let's go then, can't wait to shoot one or two cards in that sicko's butt..." Kaito grinned with a malevolent smirk.


	9. Chapter 9 - Black

**Heya !**

 **Time for another chapter, let's catch that criminal ! : )**

 **And sorry, since I'm not at home, I had some problem in charging that chapter into FF, so the story is in 'bold'. I'll correct it as soon as I'm home, I preferred to publish nevertheless : )**

 **o.O.o**

 **Anilover : Thanks : ) Ah, well, since they got the guy by surprise, he didn't had any weapon on him so it would have been hard to kill him. So he was just eager to isolate himself asap with Kazuha, knocking down Heiji was the quickest solution !**

 **emmahoshi : They were the exception, that's why I spoke about their weeding : ) See, I guessed your question when I wrote it xD Yup, 4 ! That guy has been active for long, so one wouldn't have been enough :p Well, those bodies are old but not that much so don't expect an old geezer ; ) Yup, Kazuha is strong but in the manga, just like Ran, they always find a reason for them to be useless... Fight it, girls ! ^^ Maah, Akako is a witch, nothing frightens them ; ) Haha, then keep a light near you for this chapter also xD**

 **JarayZ : First review : Yup *bows* I'm impressed at how you keep your word : ) Ah, yes, I didn't want her to seem too bizarre with purple hairs : ) Ah, she's a bit in chap 9 & 10, but will be more later ; ) Yea, Igor forever xD - Second review (; ) ): Yes, this story will be darker... I'll have one or two mad guys :p Ah well, answers to your questions in this chapter, you just had to ask ! ; ) But yes, it was more a matter of 'why' than 'who' in that case :3**

* * *

 **Chapter 9 -** **Black**

* * *

"- An' then should be on the left... There." Heiji said, taking the next turn.

The four boys and Akako had been following the instructions given by Kazuha, taking that small door she came from, and were starting to look as dusty as the Osakan girl when they found her.

"- Great..." The witch grumbled a bit when she had to get rid of another web caught in her hair.

"- Come on, that's part of your hobbies, isn't it ?" Kaito taunted her with a mysterious smirk.

"- I don't see how this could fit into a lady's hobbies..." Hakuba stated out, also looking annoyed after that walk in those undergrounds passages, with his high class clothes, not the kind he'd want to dirty.

"- If you knew..." The Thief whispered back, though more for himself. "Sooo, we should be looking around here ?" He asked to change the subject.

"- Ye...s" The Osakan finished as he entered a new room, seeing the same kind of table they found the other body on, there also with strange chalk drawings, mixed with a bit of blood, and he knew where it came from...

Akako approached with a frown, recognizing some of the symbols but the others...

"- Our culprit seems to have taken a liking into black magic..." She said with a low voice, following the circles with the tip of her fingers.

"- Black magic ?" Shinichi wondered, also coming closer to the table, near Hattori and Koizumi, giving a look of worry at his best friend but he was reassured to see it looked like he was focusing on the case, leaving his rage aside.

"- This is really a weird one then..." Saguru observed with a bored sigh. "So what's his motive ? Does he think sacrificing young girls will summon whatever demon to satisfy his wildest dreams ? And since this fails, obviously, he feels the need to start again ?

\- Something like that..." The witch nodded, hoping the man really didn't own any mystical powers. The fact he didn't seem to have managed to summon anything - or she clearly would have noticed - was in favour of an ordinary man but the markings were really well executed for a mere amateur and adding to that the fact she couldn't spot him...

Kaito eyed Akako with a look of suspicion, remembering the discussion they had when the group arrived, wondering if he had to start to fear for his life now or not... His look was suddenly caught by a small shining item in the room and, coming closer to it, he noticed it was a snake statue, with what seemed to be emerald eyes.

He whistled with admiration, bringing his hand to the little stones, before hearing a "click" as he touched the stone head by accident.

"- Where... is she?

\- Wow ! " The Thief exclaimed as a secret passage opened on a really pissed off looking man armed with a long curved knife, knife he tried to stab Kaito with and would have succeeded if he hadn't such reflexes, though he ended on his butt on the floor.

The man finished to go out of the passageway and entered the place, eyes shining with madness as he laid them on the room, looking for his lost prey. He had dark eyes and hairs, clothes so dirty their colour was long forgotten and seemed brownish. Being in his late twenties, he could have been nice-looking but the expression distorting his face and the untidy beard covering half of it just gave a disgusting feeling.

"- Reda-kun ?" Akako asked, barely recognizing the one who had been her mentor's son, basing her guess more on an intuition.

The killer turned to her, noticing to his greatest pleasure a young woman in the middle of all those useless males, displaying now a smile presaging nothing good.

The witch looked down at him as he took a step towards her, with ice-cold eyes that forced him to put down his knife.

"- No one moves..." She ordered firmly, not wanting to be disturbed by some stupid act of heroism : he was a man after all, and that implied she would be able to control him.

Feeling a resistance, she sent her powers full force at him, locking her eyes in his, sure of her force but that assurance was quickly replace by disbelief when the man smirked and raised his blade, ready to pierce her with it.

Hakuba, noticing something was wrong, pushed her away at the last moment, and grunted as he fell on the floor with her, bringing his hand to the wound the man had managed to inflict him on his left thigh.

Kaito took his card gun out and shoot from the floor where he was still sitting to force the criminal to let go of his weapon, while the two other guys tried to find something to defend themselves.

Retrieving his knife that fell on the floor after the magician's blow, the man rushed out of the room, barely avoiding a skull Shinichi kicked at him with force and that slammed the wall in front of him in a cloud of dust.

"- Crap !" Heiji swore, taking what looked like a staff to run after the man, Kaito and Shinichi just on his heels.

"- Move on the sides !" The Thief ordered, aiming at the guy who was opening a wooden door to pin his clothes at it with several cards. "The run is over, dude..."

His only answer was a confident smile as the criminal tore the thick cloth of his top as if it was some paper.

"- What's that guy ?!" Hattori exclaimed as he saw how easy it had been for him to free himself.

Not bothering to find an answer, Shinichi kicked a helmet he had taken from a nearby armour at him, to freeze with startle when he saw the killer stopped it one-handed.

"- I don't know but he seems to like going to the gym..." The Tokyoite said with a casual tone to hide his own surprise.

"- So do I..." The Osakan observed, reinforcing his grip on the staff as he rushed to the man.

They spared once or twice, Heiji feeling his impressive force until his own feet as he parried his blows with a pained grimace. He noticed in the corner of his eye that Kaito was making a sign towards him, clearly asking him to lead the mad man to a specific spot. Doing his best, his shoulders burning with the effort of stopping his opponent's knife, he managed to bring the criminal to the place the Thief had indicated.

"- Now ! Move away !" The Osakan heard him yell, so he threw himself to the floor and rolled on the side, to see the man being buried under the white cloak of the Kid.

Shinichi was only waiting for that and jumped on the shape wriggling on the floor, to hit what should have been his head with a big stone he had found on the ground.

He moved away as he felt the man stopped moving and the Thief cautiously lifted the cloth, to check if he was out. He indeed was, so Kaito quickly tied him with everything he had before falling on the floor with a sigh.

"- First the gloves, now this..." He said with a disgusted face at his dirtied cape. "The Kaitou Kid will have quite the laundry to do if he wants his immaculate costume back...

\- Eh, it was your idea to hang around in white..." Shinichi taunted. "For a thief, that's not really smart...

\- My father's idea you mean !" The magician smiled, though a bit sadly. "But what the hell was that guy...

\- Don't know..." Shinichi admitted, eyeing the man. "We'll have to warn the police about his strength though, we don't want him to escape...

\- Clearly... Above all when we know we'll easily have that bastard convicted, with all the clues he left near the bodies." Heiji pointed out, darkly happy to know the man was up for a life-long sentence.

"- Ah, I see you caught him ?" Saguru smiled, limping as he approached them, helped by Akako.

"- Oy, oy, an' I'm the "bloody idiot" ? " The Osakan stated with a smirk at his blond-haired friend. "Ya're the only one who can' get hurt, who'll look after ya? Ya're the only doc here...

\- I guess your hot bloodedness rubbed on me..." The half brit said with a grin of embarrassment.

"- You sure you're ok, Saguru ?" Kaito worried, seeing the detective had quickly bandaged his wound with the witch's scarf, but it was still bloody.

"- I'd better not to run too much on that leg for the next week but that's nothing too serious.

\- Still, what happened there, Koizumi-san ? You hoped to win against him in a stare contest ?" Shinichi joked, though his question was real, the girl had been in danger by her reckless behaviour.

"- Believe it or not, it usually works..." She smiled, and once again the Tokyoite felt some butterflies in his stomach, making him lose his train of thoughts.

"- So ya knew the guy ?" Heiji asked, remembering how the woman had called him by his name.

"- He's my mentor's son... The last time I saw him, he was around his twenties, so he didn't change much... Apart from the beard." She admitted with a sad look at the man on the ground.

"- I thought he'd be younger, you spoke about him as if he was a kohai..." Hakuba pointed out, getting a shrug as an answer from the witch. "Ok... Should we go back to welcome the police with our new friend?

\- Good idea..." The Osakan agreed as he got up to walk to him. "Come, I'll help ya, Saguru. We're not goin' ta let a lady drag ya through all those stairs...

\- I'll help you too." Shinichi proposed, going to the blond-haired detective's other side as Akako stepped away.

"- Oh no, you help me with the ugly one, no way I can take him upstairs alone..." Kaito pointed out, glaring at the unconscious killer.

"- Heiji-kun's support will be enough, you should help Kaito-kun, indeed." Saguru confirmed.

"- Roger..." The azure-eyed sighed, looking at the man on the floor.

"- Akako..." The Thief asked with a low voice at the woman on his side, careful not to be overheard by Shinichi. "Should we fear him to wake up ? As I'll be first line, I'd like to know... He resisted your charms after all, so I bet he's a bit special...

\- Well, his mother was a red witch after all..." The witch answered with a serious voice. "Even if those powers can only be given from mother to daughter, he has a bit of magic in him. I imagine he tried to turn to dark magic, as both sex can practise it, but got eaten by it... Though, apart from his more that average strength and his minor spells' resistance, he's an ordinary person.

\- Good to hear..." The magician smiled with relief, before a smirk appeared on his face. "Ne... how old are you ? You're older than him, right ? You said 'Reda-kun'... "

The glare Akako sent him could have frozen the warmest volcano on earth.

"- Haha, it's ok, I don't want to know after all... " He said with a small laugh, raising a hand between them as to protect himself from the witch's wrath.

o.O.o

Hakuba was laying in his bed, somehow unable to fall asleep, his wound a bit stinging. The medics who came with the police, in case Kazuha had needed some serious medical care, had stitched him and the anaesthesia was starting to fade away. The law enforcement had taken the culprit in custody and was supposed to come back the following morning with their scientists to collect everything they could from the different crime scenes.

The group stayed to sleep here, as planned, and it was really too late for them to go back home.

Suddenly feeling the urge to get up, the blond-haired winced on his feet, both from cold and from the pain as he put some weight on his leg, and, after grabbing a cover he laid on his shoulders, he found himself walking in the hallways.

He felt as if he was half-asleep, not really thinking about the real purpose of this walk in the middle of the night, his bare feet hitting the floor with regularity, echoing in the empty hidden passages.

Saguru blinked as he finally felt he could controlnce again his moves on his own, to find himself in the wide room they found the killer's bed and food remains, the one with the cauldron. The only light of the place, a red one, was coming in fact from that very cauldron, and a feminine shape, her back turned had him, was bending on it.

"- Oh Lucifer, come forth !" She shouted after a last move towards the cauldron.

The detective, his brain unable to analyse what he was seeing, approached as he thought he recognised the voice and, indeed, the girl was Akako, in a really specific outfit...

He blushed, detailing it, seeing her clothes were hiding only very few parts of her perfect anatomy, showing her waist and stopping just below the chest, where a red cloth was emphasizing more than hiding her feminine attributes.

"- Show me !" The witch firmly ordered, her red eyes burning with power as she laid them on her familiar, suddenly taking Hakuba out of his contemplation, when he finally noticed with horror something was floating above the cauldron, something black, with horns and a face that clearly wasn't human...

Before he could event try to identify the ... animal – his mind had switched to that word at the last second to avoid him to think about anything related to the occult – the cloud of smoke surrounding both girl and cauldron turned into a kind of translucent screen, where he recognized, eyes wide in wonder, the Kaitou Kid.

"- ONCE THE KAITOU KID PUT HIS HANDS ON PANDORA..." A deep voice commented, as the image moved, showing a smirking white Thief, holding a stone to the moon, and turning to face the screen with a smile of triumph, starting to articulate something. "HE SHALL MEET HIS FATED DEATH."

Saguru stopped breathing as he saw the smile on Kaito's face slowly turned into a pained grimace, his pure white jacket now tainted by deep scarlet, at a speed and in proportion that his doctor's mind analysed as deadly. Breathing heavily, the Thief slid on the floor, letting go of the stone he had in his hand, the light in his eyes fading more and more. The detective saw himself, suddenly appearing to the Kid's side, trying to compress the wound, tears in the eyes as he knew his best friend was a lost cause, whispering some comforting words the other couldn't even hear anymore. Finally giving up, his hands hanging along his body, useless, he looked with the deepest sorrow at Akako who just appeared on his side.

When the vision finally stopped, the blond-haired fell on his knees, his whole body shaking... The illusion had just been too real.

He looked up as he heard some footsteps near him and recognised the witch's high heels.

"- ... What was... that ? What...are you? " He dared to ask with a shaking voice, locking his eyes with the girl's.

"- This was a premonition... Something that will happen in the immediate future. As melodramatic as it can sound to your Cartesian mind, I am a witch. A red one, to be precise."

She stopped, to have a sad smile at his unbelieving look. "With everything you already saw, you're still trying to deny it... That's why I don't like to meddle with scientists..." She stated with a little smirk.

"- This is just...

\- Impossible ? Maybe. But you'll have to find an answer as to why you limped down here in the middle of the night when you should be sleeping with all the meds they gave you and where those images came from..."

Hakuba lowered his head, unable to find an acceptable explanation.

Not really waiting for his answer, the witch sat next to him and spoke again. "I "called" you here, thanks to my... skills. Let's say as a present for saving my life today ? Though I'm not sure those truths will really be a present to you... They'll probably turn to a burden.

"What you saw is... Something I've been seeing more and more often. Something that is going to happen if we don't do anything to prevent it... I wanted to see if this cauldron could show me anything else, as it is filled with the magic of my former master but..." The girl stopped an instant, before shrugging. "The result is still the same...

\- Did you warn...

\- Kaito ? Haha, don't make that face, Hakuba-kun." Akako laughed at the blond-haired face. "I've known he's the Kid since I met him, don't worry about me spilling his secret. I told him yes... But he didn't want to believe in it, even though he knew about my powers. That's why I thought I could try to talk to you.

\- It's hard for me to believe..." Hakuba shook his head, still not at ease with the girl's secret.

"- Don't worry, I didn't really expect to convince you tonight. If you could just watch out, ok ? Ignore where that warning came from if it helps you to feel better, but just pay attention."

Saguru remained silent an instant and finally nodded.

"- Good..." The girl smiled warmly, getting up and holding her hand to him to help him on his feet. "I'll be doing the same on my side but two are better than one.

\- Does that... attraction I feel sometimes towards you is related to... all that?" The detective dared to ask once he faced her again, his mind starting to analyse on a different point of view the little strange facts that had happened around the witch.

"- Haha, very probably..." Akako softly laughed, amused by the fact he noticed it wasn't totally natural. "I can't do anything against that... I can tame it a bit but I naturally attract the opposite sex, that's what red witches are about after all. Just try not to mention that to anyone ?" She asked, a slight pledging light in the eyes.

"- Who'd believe me..." The blond-haired sighed in defeat.

"- That's the idea... Ok, you better go back to bed now... Want me to jinx you back to yours or you'll find your way ?

\- I'll find it by myself !" Hakuba assured, a bit stronger than needed, when he saw her taunting smirk, not really at ease with the idea of someone controlling his body.

His mind still a bit blank of all this information he didn't want to apprehend, he wished the girl good night and turned to find his way back.

* * *

 **I liked the idea of Akako hiding her true age, it made her more mysterious : ) There's of course not hint of an age difference in the manga, it's just me having fun xD**


	10. Chapter 10 - Threats

**Heya !**

 **Time to wrap up that case with Akako and go back to the main story ! : )**

 **Ps : I'll do my best to keep up with my usual planning but my health is a bit tricky nowadays, so I may** **sometimes** **be a bit late or a bit early in my updates (+ / - 1 day max I think). Please be indulgent ! ; )**

 **o.O.o**

 **emmahoshi : Ah, he tries at least, but doesn't succeed : ) Haha, yes, sorry for your mysteries' sense, a few readers guessed it so it wasn't that hidden, you may be a desperate cause xD Ah, I liked the idea... Hakuba needs to let go from time to time (and Heiji should take his time a bit more instead of rushing... both need to learn from the other !ˆˆ). Nope, there isn't such hints, I updated the chapter because I forgot to put it : it was just me having fun with Akako's background : ) Aaaah that vision... You'll see in a few chapters :p A spoiler? Naah, I don't spoil, you should know that : ) Ok, minor spoilers for this chapter shouldn't hurt... It's ending with a cliff and Snake will appear, that's all you'll have ! :p**

 **Laury Rose : Ah, I published it pretty early, around 1am Sunday morning so I guess a few missed it ˆˆ; But I get 2 reviews then ! xD Nah, I didn't want her to be traumatized... But I wanted a mad guy, so sadist seemed a good idea xD Haha, yea, I announced I'd be touching some occult thingies :) But it's fun to see you stutter just like hakuba xD Ah, that you'll see... ˆˆ Oh, MKO is Magic Kaitou Organization, in opposition with BO, Black Organization, Conan' , grats for guessing the culprit ! ; ) Let's say it's the cold, how could a story force you to shiver... ? XD Yup, minor wounds.. can't promise I'll be that nice next time ~**

 **Anilover : That was me having fun : ) Won't be mentioned anymore ^^ Hmm thinks I don't think he likes the idea of 'magic', I think, on the contrary, he'll avoid her xD But they'll both have the same goal, so they'll have to work a bit together, yes... Hmm this question, despite the fact it looks like an easy one, isn't... So I won't be able to answer to it here : )**

 **JarayZ : Oh ? How would you use both ? :O Yup, I'm wondering xD Haha, well, we'll still have a bit to go through before ending this story, I need some more bad guys... may they be mad or not ^^ Yes : ) Since Akako has 'red' in Japanese in her name, I wanted her mentor to have also that colour in her name. I thought about french first but it was hard to make it look like a japanese name... So I went for English : ) Yup, you'll see in this chapter ; ) Our friends will be facing Snake now ! Oh, and another spoiler, this story won't be 28 chapters long... That's quite new to me xD**

* * *

 **Chap 10 : Threats**

* * *

"- Hey, lovebirds, time to have lunch !" said Shinichi's voice through the Osakans' door after he knocked at it.

"- Give us a sec..." Heiji's answered with a muffled voice, still half buried under the covers as he woke up from the noise.

"- Meet you at the morning room then !"

The dark-skinned stretched and turned his head to the girl laying near him, her eyes fluttering as she also started to awake.

"- Want ta get up ?" He asked, gently stroking her cheek so she could feel she was safe before the memories of the previous night came back to her mind.

"- First..." She started, finding her way under the covers to cuddle herself up against her lover's chest. "Yea, that's better...

\- Ya're alright ? " Heiji dared to ask after a moment, holding the girl in his arms.

"- ... I can't say I haven't been scared..." Kazuha admitted with a low voice, trying to be even closer to him, as to forget the icy cold induced by the fear she had felt when the man threw her on that stone table.

"- Ya've been strong, Kazuha... " He said, gently patting her head, careful to avoid the bandage around it. "I'm sorry I couldn' stop him... I can' imagine what he could've done if ya didn' escape..."

Feeling he was shaking, the girl moved a bit away, to look at him, seeing a mix of anger and guilt on his face. "Hey, Heiji, I'm good, ok ?

\- Good ? Look at ya… Yer arms are covered with bandages an' ya almost got killed, how can this be good ? I should have never brought ya here, ya got hurt by my fault again..." The Osakan concluded, putting his hand in front of his face, his head filled with dark 'what if's' he couldn't get rid of.

"- Heiji... I'm old enough ta care of myself, I'm here because I wanted ta.

\- Ya're here because ya followed me... Nothin' would have happened ta ya if ya stayed home." He finished, getting up and taking a few clothes. "Ya'd be far better without me...

\- That's fer me ta decide." Kazuha retorted with a hard voice, using her arms to sit on the bed and look at him as he had already his fingers on the door's handle.

Ignoring the pain that move induced, she locked her eyes in his with a face full of determination as he turned one last time to look at her.

"- ... Meet ya in the mornin' room then." Heiji gave up with an annoyed sigh, unable to fight her stare.

And then he left.

"- Ahou..." The girl whispered, letting herself fall back in the bed, holding her wounded arm against her.

o.O.o

It was with a gloomy face the Osakan entered the morning room, to see that, apart from Kaito and Aoko, everyone was already here.

"- 'mornin'...

\- Oh, I know someone who got off the wrong foot..." Shinichi smirked as he saw his best friend's face, getting an annoyed grunt as an answer.

"- Kazuha will be joining us ?" Ran wondered as she saw he was alone.

"- Yea, she's comin'..." He confirmed, throwing himself in a couch and brining his knees to him, in a "don't disturb me I'm not in the mood" pose.

"- OK... I bet they fought again..." The long-haired girl deplored with a low voice, as she turned back to Shinichi and Hakuba who was near him.

"- Clearly..." The half brit agreed, before looking of the corner of the eye at Akako.

The girl was sitting in an armchair, head on the hand, and was looking at the window. Her outfit was clearly tamer than the one he last saw her in, and he couldn't stop himself to detail her, as to look for any proof of what happened the previous night, still wondering if all that had just been a mad dream...

Saguru was taken out of his observation when Aoko and Kaito arrived in the room.

"- 'Morning, guys !" Kaito said, finishing on a yawn he wasn't fast enough to hide behind his hand.

"- Manners, Kaito..." His wife taunted with a smirk, before turning to the others. "Good morning !"

A chorus of "hello" answered to them, after what the blond-haired stepped suddenly towards the Kid, though careful not to put too much weight on his wounded thigh. "Kaito-kun, could I have a word ?

\- Of course..." The Thief accepted with an interrogative look. "Outside ?

\- Yes..."

Noticing his friend was limping, even if it was discreet, the magician held him the door with a concern look.

"- You sure you should walk so soon on that leg?

\- It's ok, it's just a flesh wound." Hakuba shrugged, ignoring the faint stinging of his leg as he leaned against a nearby wall. He then looked around him, checking they were alone."More importantly... What's... What's Koizumi-san ?

\- Uhhh... You mean who maybe?

\- No. What. She told me you knew about her... abilities. I saw her last night, I still can't believe..."

Kaito laughed at his friend's panicked face, understanding what he was speaking about. "You saw her in her... fancy costume ? With the lil' snakes ?"

Saguru blushed a bit at the memory, fact that the Thief didn't miss. "I'll take that as a yes... Well, Saguru, I don't think you should look too much into that..." He said, patting his friend with a sympathetic smile."That girl is even more trouble than me...

\- It seems... But are those things she does... More than illusions ?"

The magician looked at the blond-haired, knowing that accepting something extraordinary that wasn't a magic trick could be a bit hard to him. "Everything hasn't a logic explanation you know... What she does is more than just some tricks. And her premonitions saved me once or twice, though I will never admit it in front of her. If she told you to be cautious, look out...

\- Good morning, boys ! " Kazuha saluted as she saw them in front of the morning room's door where she was heading to. "Am I interrupting something ? " She wondered at their conspiratorial faces.

"- Hello ! Nah, it's ok, we were going back in.

\- How are you doing ?" Saguru asked after once last look at Kaito.

"- It's ok, ya did a great work !" She assured him with a smile.

"- Remember me to check those after the lunch...

\- Ok ! Shall we ?"

The three of them went in, under Akako amused look when she saw Hakuba's face and noticed the fact he was still avoiding to look at her eyes.

She smirked at him and focused her look at Shinichi, who was now just near her, as they all got up to welcome Kazuha, and he suddenly stuttered, eyes a bit lost, unable to have his attention to somewhere else than on the witch.

 _"I told her to go easy on him...Just because he looks like me..."_ Kaito sighed in his mind, knowing the girl was doing it only to impress the blond-haired detective and that Shinichi, already amending for that "I kissed Aoko" thing, would have it hard if the girl played too much with her skills.

Before the magician could even interfere, Ran noticed the blank look of her lover, staring at a certain part of the long-haired witch's anatomy, not far away from drooling in front of her.

"- Ouch !" The Tokyoite complained, bringing his hand to his head after she gave him a slap.

"- You're not even listening... Stop embarrassing yourself, what's your problem with girls nowadays ? I feel like I'm going out with a teenager..." She grumbled with a hard look.

"- Sorry, I don't know what..."

Proud of herself, Akako winked at Hakuba who facepalmed, starting to worry if he already acted as stupid as Shinichi had under her powers' influence, above all when they were in high school together.

He still didn't want to accept it, even if the proves were starting to be overwhelming.

But this vision she shared with him... If there was any risk for it to happen...

His eyes fell on his best friend. _"Believe her or not... I'll be on my guard..."_

* * *

o.O.o

* * *

With a sigh, Hakuba remembered his decision as he saw the white glider fly over his head in the night's sky.

 _"How am I supposed to watch over him when he's at 100 feet of the ground ?"_ He thought with an annoyed expression.

Two days had passed since they helped Akako to get rid of her unwanted inhabitant and here they were again, at a Kaitou Kid's heist. They had decided, after that second wounded passer-by that all of them would come in support for Kaito. This wasn't that surprising for the police as the three detectives had, at one point or another, been known to hunt the Kid and had been helpful once or twice to Nakamori-keibu so it was plausible enough for them not to stand out. They however decided Aoko should stay away from the heists as often as possible : her father would have started to be suspicious if he saw her here all the time when Kaito wasn't around. She had been also trying to catch the Kid, and made that "alliance" with Hakuba and Kuroba in that goal but the absence of the magician would stand out too much if two were here out of three. And very probably, the Thief had probably done his best to discourage her, not at ease with the idea of her being here when the Organization was going wild.

So here they were, hidden detectives in black clothes and flashy thief in white ones, Detectives Boys' badges pinned on their tops, the first three trying to look out for the villains while the last was trying to put his hand on a jewel, each time hoping harder it could be Pandora.

"- Careful, guys, I spotted Snake in there..."The blond-haired heard Kaito's voice through the badge on his vest." He was leaving the roof of the East wing, that's for you, Tantei-kun.

\- I'm on it." The Tokyoite confirmed.

"- We should also head this way, Heiji-kun.

\- I was goin' ta propose that ta ya." The Osakan agreed to Hakuba's suggestion, starting to run to reach the East wing, as he was the furthest from it. "Go back ta yer hunt, Kid, we're on the watch."

Kaito tilted the side of his glider with a smile, happy to have such efficient guardian angels for his critics.

 _"Though the game is far less interesting without them on my heels..."_ He grinned as he broke the glass roof of the gallery, landing exactly on the glass cage of the jewel he was after.

"- The Kaitou Kid ! Send the nets !" Nakamori-keibu ordered as he saw the Thief near the jewel, yelling to cover the alarm that had activated when he fell on the stand.

"- Tsk, dear inspector, I'm not some kind of wild animal..." Kaito grinned, sending some cards to cut the net that was menacing to fall on him.

"- Oh, I know that... That's why it's a net of steel !"

 _"Uh uh..."_ The magician sweat-dropped as he saw his cards weren't able to cut through the trap falling on him.

Throwing a smoke bomb, he quickly picked the glass case and took the jewel before changing in a policeman outfit but was nevertheless trapped under the net.

"- Catch him, don't let him escape, he got the stone !" The inspector ordered, guessing as he heard the broken glass noise the criminal had already managed his mischief.

 _"Exactly what I needed..."_ Kaito smirked as he started to feel some men trying to catch an invisible thief, moving their arms in front of them as they couldn't see a thing.

"- I see him !" He yelled, with a different voice than his. "Damn, he trapped me under the net ! Catch him, he's going up ! "

The policemen all looked up to contemplate what the boy knew was a dummy but they, of course, couldn't guess.

"- Let's move outside, we can't have him escape !

\- Yes sir !" Various very motivated voices answered.

"- Could anyone free me first ?" The Thief asked with a smile of embarrassment at his 'colleagues'.

 _"All wrapped up..."_ The Thief smiled a few minutes later, bringing his hand to his pocket to feel the shape of the big jewel, glad everything went as planned - or almost - and apparently without the previous aggressiveness from the Organization.

Hiding in the last floor after he followed the policemen, as if he was joining them in their Kid's hunt, he used the moonlight from a window to look at the shiny stone in his hands, to let his arm fell along his body when he saw it wasn't the good one...

Kaito was starting to wonder if Pandora really existed. Or if someone already discovered it, waiting for the good night, next week, to use his fabulous power. Or even if it hadn't been destroyed.

He pocketed the jewel again and slightly slapped his cheeks. _"One week left..."_ He said to encourage himself.

"- No luck, once again..." The magician stated in his badge to inform his friends. "How are you doing, Shinichi ?

\- Had a visual of him but he managed to flee..." The Tokyoite panted, using a low voice in case the man wasn't far away.

"- Are you soon there, boys ?" He asked to the other detectives.

"- Not that far... Sorry, with that leg, I cannot..." Saguru apologized, sorry of being so slow as he didn't want to run at full speed, trying to preserve his leg, the wound having just closed up.

"- I'm almost there..." The Osakan informed, his heavy breathing echoing in the others' badges.

"- I'll be joining you then..." Kaito said, back in a quick move to his white costume, opening the window to jump and open his glider, trying to stay high in the skies not to be spotted.

But apparently someone did, and that someone was clearly expecting him as he barely avoided a bullet well-aimed at him only a dozen of seconds later. Squinting, he recognized Snake's fedora and black clothes on the roof of a small 2-floored annex, just near the East wing.

"- Got him... He's gotten out of the building, he's in the annex facing the East wing, meet you there...

\- Be careful... " Hakuba advised, heading to the door and pushing it to go outside.

He was still a bit far away but distinguished Heiji's green vest and Shinichi's deep blue blazer a bit further in front of him, both heading to the annex.

Both men were suddenly knocked to the ground when the building they were heading to decided to explode, sending rocks everywhere in an ear-stinging noise.

"- ... What the... Kaito-kun ! " Saguru yelled, rushing to what was now ruins, ignoring his leg, struck by fear at the thought his best friend was probably buried under that mess of rocks. "No way !"

* * *

 **Oops, a cliffy ... ; )**


	11. Chapter 11 - Wanted

**Hey there !**

 **Here is the end of the cliff, hope the wait hasn't been too long... ; )**

 **But I guess this time, our boys got themselves in the biggest mess... :p**

 **o.O.o**

 **Anlover : haha, someone who likes cliffs ? That's unusual ; ) Naaah, sorry, there won't really be Hakuba's romance in there ^^; Everything will be happening in a really short timespan so no time to develop anything romantic ^^;**

 **Great : Ah, well, you start to know my style, I'm not that much of a 'main chars' killer : p Maa, don't worry ; ) As long as you enjoy it ! ^^**

 **Laury Rose : Kaito was in the building, yes :p It was fun to have a teasing Akako : ) After all, she's already teasing Kaito a lot in the manga ! (that's when she doesn't try to kill him^^;). Yup : the MKO wants the stones Kid is stealing so they decided that getting rid of him was a high-priority mission, as they are getting so close to the deadline, they can't afford to take the risk him to leave with Pandora. Before, they could try to steal it back from him, so it was annoying but not that much...**

 **emmahoshi : nah, I had to do transition chapters in this story, the arcs didn't want to end right at the end of a chapter ^^;; Yes, I didn't want this quarrel to finish with 'heiji gets hurt, kazuha sees him at the hospital and then poof, a new couple!' would have been boring :p And yes, both are right, so let see if hattori can accept kazuha to take some risk and Kazuha can explain him that she won't blame him if anything happens... Haha, I think Hakuba has been pretty shaken by Akako so he needed answers asap xD Eh, I don't think Kudo deserves it, those are 'accidents' after all... xD Uhh, twisted ankles need rest : never walk on it even if you feel better, else it'll take ages to heal :p Yeaaa, cliffy ! ; )**

 **Lady Paper : Haha xD Well, thanks ^^**

* * *

 **Chap 11 : Wanted**

* * *

Cautiously getting up, the two detectives shook the dust that was on their clothes and looked at each other, to see that, if they ignored the scratches, both seemed rather ok, unless there was some hidden damage.

"- Are ya... ?" Heiji stopped when Shinichi shook his head, pointing at his ears.

Yes, clearly, being so close to the explosion, their ears were quite ringing and their audition would need a few minutes before being normal again.

The Tokyoite turned his head with a worried expression to the remains of the building in front of him. "Kid..." He muttered, contemplating the damages as the cloud of dust was starting to fall on the floor.

The building's second floor had fell on the first, smashing it properly. Luckily, the blast had been so intense it had stopped whatever fire that could have started, so the only risk remaining was further collapse of the structure.

"- We need ta..." The Osakan started, rushing to the debris as he remembered the Thief was very probably buried in there.

Hakuba joined him quickly, soon followed by Shinichi once he got out of his startle, both climbing fast despite the fact some stones rolled under their feet, too focused on trying to spot some white cloth or glider remains in all that mess around them.

"- He's here ! " The dark-skinned yelled, starting to move some rocks, having noticed what was probably Kaito's shoe going out from a large piece of what had been a part of the roof a bit further down from his position.

The two others came closer to help him, pushing some rocks away, so they could see what was under the largest debris. As they quickly succeeded in creating an opening, Shinichi switched his watch on and crouched to try to pass the head to see inside.

The space under the roof's part was finally quite wide : the top was leaning against some remaining wall, creating a place large enough to mostly shield the Thief, who was lying on the stomach under it.

"- Kaito ?" The Tokyoite tried, without getting an answer.

He touched his leg but had no reaction, though it informed him he was alive, since it was hot and he could feel a pulse on his ankle. But the Kid's head was a bit too close of the wall and that meant he probably hit his skull. As to which extent...

The azure-eyed detective got his head out with precaution and turned to his friends, careful to use a low voice as he knew, with his ears ringing, he'll probably speak too loud.

"- Could we try to push a bit that debris ? One of us should be able to get in... " He said, trying to add some gestures for the others to understand."Saguru, do you want to... ?

\- My leg would hinder me, I can't really crawl at the moment..." He answered, sadly shaking his head.

"- I'll be going then... Ready ?" The Tokyoite asked.

The two others both nodded and positioned themselves on each side, pushing on their legs to move the stone, even if it was a little bit.

Shinichi pushed some other rocks and, when he saw he was probably going to be able to go in, he sneaked inside the opening, scratching a bit his blazer and his shoulder with it on a metallic part but managed to reach the Thief.

"- You can let go !" He assured, before putting his watch between his teeth.

He carefully turned Kaito to have him half lying on his own knees and to see he effectively had a head wound : like all of this kind, it seemed to have bled heavily but it was already starting to stop by itself, indicating that, with a bit of luck, it wasn't too deep...

"- Hey, Kaito ! Wake up !"

At his calls, the magician at last started to react a bit, slowly coming back to himself.

"- Hey, easy..." The detective advised with a soft voice as the injured tried to sit.

"- Can you describe his wounds ?" Hakuba asked with a strong voice, passing his head in the hole.

"- Big blow on the head apparently, but it's not really bleeding anymore... Don't see anything else for the moment... Let's get him out...

\- Uh, guys..." Heiji said, touching Saguru's shoulder to have his attention, though his look was turned to something else. "There are more an' more spectators around here, it would perhaps be better fer our... favourite magician ta find himself a less flashy costume...

\- Heard that, Shinichi-kun ? " The blond-haired wanted to confirm.

"- Yes... "

The Tokyoite removed the cape and put it in the Thief's hat with his monocle. Looking at his friend and seeing his eyes were starting to open, he preferred to ask. "Kaito ? Think I could help you out of that vest ? We need to have you... incognito..."

The young man grumbled a bit but sat, keeping his balance thanks to the help of the detective, and removed his vest and necktie. Rumbling in its pockets, he even got a black t-shirt out and quickly put it under his shirt, leaving it opened for it to be apparent, giving him a more casual look.

"- ... Snake ?" Kaito managed to ask, his head starting to think straight again.

"- Sorry, we didn't see him... First, let's get you out of here. And pray for him to be buried under those rocks.

\- Don't count on it... " The magician stated with a dark voice, bringing his hand to his forehead with a grimace.

With Shinichi's help and the boys' as they lifted the roof's debris once again, the Kid could finally reach the outside to spot the firemen's arrival, along with two ambulances.

"- Over here ! " Hakuba called, waving at the medics, with a side look at Kaito who was letting himself fall on the floor. "My friend got caught in the explosion... "

Two men quickly approached him with a stretcher and the first to arrive crouched to the Thief who was on the ground.

"- What's your name, sir ?

\- Kuroba Kaito.

\- Ok, Kuroba-kun, I'm going to perform a little examination, ok ?"

The magician nodded, trying not to move too much when the man looked at his wounded head but couldn't stop himself from jerking back when he put a bright light in his eyes.

"- He may have a slight concussion..." The blond-haired stated as his friend was being examined. "The vertebrae cervicales seem to have been spared, luckily. And those two..." He added, pointing at Shinichi and Heiji. " ... may have damaged eardrums, it would be better to check before it aggravates.

\- Ok..." The medic answered with a surprised look at the half brit. "I'll immobilize your friend's neck and have him in the stretcher just in case and...

\- I'll be walking." Kaito refused bluntly, getting up to make his point.

"- Sorry, he can be stuborn..." Saguru added with a smile of apology.

"- Let's go to the ambulance then... Are you a medic of some kind ? You seem pretty knowledgeable...

\- Oh, I didn't introduce myself. I'm Hakuba Saguru. Detective, mostly, but I'm starting my internship in medicine at the end of the month.

\- Ah, that's explains the medical knowledge." The rescuer smiled, keeping an eye on the Thief as they started to head to the vehicle.

Both detectives exchanged a look as Hakuba followed the medics.

"- That Snake bastard... I bet it was a trap, he tried ta bury him alive under that..." The Osakan swore, giving a dark look at the remains of the building under his feet.

"- We'll corner him, Heiji, that's what we, detectives, are good at. " The Tokyoite said, patting his friend. "And even if we don't succeed quickly, he'll fail his mission at the end of next week..."

The dark-skinned nodded at him, knowing time was on their side, and started to follow the medical team with Shinichi.

Not far away from them, hidden in the shadows of the trees near the remains of the building, was standing a man in black with a moustache, moustache quite stretched by the wide grin half hidden by his fedora.

He stayed to see once again his plan to kill the Kid failed but he learnt so many things just now he was ready to forget it.

Those Shinichi and Heiji who just left knew about him, and guessed his goal tonight... Detectives the blue-eyed had said.

Just like that other guy, the blond-haired, that Hakuba Saguru.

And those three detectives were covering...

Having organized this explosion, Snake knew there was only one person in that building. The Kid went in and that Kuroba Kaito went out.

 _"Kuroba Kaito... Kuroba Touichi..."_ He smirked, though there was no joy on his face, just a bottled rage. After the father made a fool of him, the son was now...

The man had already been quite motivated in his mission to kill the Kid but he was even more fired up, he was so going to kill that brat...

And his friends.

Yes, everyone who was a hinder to him in that mission deserved death. And if that could hurt the Thief even more, that was worth it.

Shinichi, Heiji, Hakuba Saguru... Detectives. Kuroba Kaito. He hadn't much information but finding the four of them wouldn't be hard with that, if you knew who to ask.

"- I'll have them all killed, Kid… And I'll finish you up myself..." He whispered for himself, taking his phone out. "You'll understand you shouldn't have meddled with us, taking your damn father's coat… »

On this last threat, the man disappeared.

o.O.o

"- Ya ok, Kaito ?" Heiji asked as they met him and Hakuba at the back of the ambulance, a medic still tending his head wound.

"- What did you say ?" The magician asked loudly, apparently not hearing a thing.

"- I said..." The Osakan started even louder after a sigh, though he stopped quickly when he saw the Thief's face, displaying a wide smile, proud of his joke. "Tsk...

\- I'm good, it seems, apart from the hole in the head... Well, you three think enough for four, I didn't need it anyway... " He smiled, provoking a snort from the medic bent on him.

"- It should do..." He said after putting a bandage on the wound. "I think it's just a slight concussion so I won't force you to the hospital but stay with someone tonight and go to the ER as soon as possible if you faint or feel nauseous, ok ?

\- Haaai. Aoko will so love play the nurse for me..."

Hakuba tried not to laugh, though, with the usual delicacy of the girl, he doubted she would be a good nurse... Well, his friend just needed surveillance, that, she could do perfectly !

"- Let's go then ?" Shinichi proposed as Kaito got up.

"- Both of you get checked first and after we will leave."

The two friends exchanged a bored look but didn't dare to go against the blond-haired orders, knowing he wouldn't let it pass.

After ten more minutes, the detectives were released and the group moved a bit and isolated themselves, to avoid any unwanted ears.

"- So he escaped once again..." The Kid concluded with a look at the destroyed building.

"- Yes..." Hakuba confirmed. " We were busy retrieving you, I guess he used that opportunity. What happened in there ?

\- It was clearly a trap, I'm an idiot not to have seen it coming..." Kaito sighed, rubbing his eyes as he was starting to be tired with all those emotions. "He fired at me when I was flying to catch my attention... When I arrived here, he wasn't in sight. I tried to look for him but saw the bomb in the middle of that room pretty fast... So I rushed as I could back to the roof, I almost did it but it exploded first...

\- Lucky for you that piece of the roof protected you..." Shinichi stated, seeing how the building had been reduced to a pile of dust, except for a few larger blocks here and there.

"- Yea...

\- And it doesn't seem there was any other wounded than you tonight, that's what we wanted after all..." The blond-haired pointed out with a small smile, trying to cheer up his friend.

"- Yup, we clearly disturbed him tonight. No Kid, no stone, he'll have a hard time ta explain that ta his boss..." Heiji grinned, wishing the worse for his enemy.

"- Speaking of the stone, we should give it back to Nakamori-keibu..." The Tokyoite reminded, hiding a yawn as he was also starting to be pretty tired.

"- I'll do it... I was the closest to the explosion, they'll need my testimony I guess...

\- I will be coming with you then, Kaito-kun, and drive you back home after that." Hakuba volunteered, not wanting to let his friend alone when he had had such a blow on the head.

"- I'll try ta sneak in ta retrieve yer stuff then, better get it before the policemen find it... I'll drop them at the agency on my way back." Heiji said, observing the few men who were starting to look around the ruins. "Shinichi ?

\- I'll be lending you a hand, I'll distract the police while you get them... And after, I'll go straight to my bed !

\- Haha, that case last night finished a bit late, yea..." The Osakan admitted as his best friend yawned again, his eyes sleepy.

"- Laters and good night then ! " Kaito wished with a smile towards the two detectives. "And thanks guys, once again it would have been hard without you tonight.

\- Don' mention it !" Heiji grinned, waving his hand in front of him, feeling those 'thanks' weren't necessary. "Ok, let's go, sleepin' beauty !"

o.O.o

After one last wave to Saguru who was going back to the detective office for some late night research, Kaito turned to his house door, quitting the smile he was displaying.

He was tired, his head hurt like hell, his arm was a bit numb since he had tried to use it to protect himself from the rocks... It could have been really worse though, he knew it, but this Thief's job was getting more and more time and energy consuming. His bed and Aoko's arms were the only things he was wishing for just now.

"- Tadaima..." The magician said as he entered, not too loud in case the girl was already asleep.

"- O-kaeri !" She answered, heading to the entrance to see her husband was taking his shoes off.

"- Shouldn't you be sleeping at this time ?" He pointed out with a little smirk, seeing she was in her night robe, her eyes a bit red due to her tiredness.

"- You know I can't get asleep when you're alone on a ... mission..." Aoko smiled, before frowning a bit as she saw the white bandage around the Kid's head and his dusty clothes, recognizing a part of Kaitou Kid's outfit. "And that's what you call being cautious ?" She gently scolded, crouching to have a better look at her lover, approaching slowly her fingers to his head. "Bakaito... I won't let go to a heist without me anymore...

\- That wound is exactly why I didn't want you to come...

\- Ah ? I thought it was to prevent my father from becoming suspicious of me, and of you in the process ?" She pointed out, sticking her tongue maliciously.

"- Well..." Kaito, tired, couldn't find his words, a bit embarrassed she saw through that lie so easily, when they had decided, a long ago already, to be honest with each other.

"- I told you not to lie to me anymore..." The girl mocked him with a faint smile, amused by his embarrassment. "Maa, it's ok, that one was so obvious I can't even call it a lie."

The Thief got up to take her in his arms as a puff of love towards her overwhelmed him. From his point of view, she was the woman all men should dream of. Pretty, nice, comprehensive... He sighed in happiness, snuggling his head against her shoulder.

"- Look at you, you can't even stand on your feet... Wash yourself quickly and to bed, you kid !"

Kaito had a small laugh at the nickname but nevertheless obeyed, heading to the bathroom.

He fell asleep fifteen minutes later, curled against Aoko, enjoying her warmness, feeling comfy, already forgetting his harsh evening.

The magician was taken out of his bliss by his phone that was vibrating on his bedside table, loud enough to wake him up.

Taking it as it didn't want to stop, he looked at the time with a bored face - 2.05 a.m. - and the name made him sigh.

"- Oka-san... " The Thief answered with a sleepy voice. " 'know what time it is ? !

\- Kaito, get out and now !"

The panic in her voice got Kaito straight out of his half-sleep as he never heard her like that.

"- What's the matter ?

\- You and Aoko are in danger, just get out immediately ! I'm on my way to fetch you, I'll be at your house in 5 minutes.

\- Meet you at the secret exit."

The indigo-eyed quickly hung up to bend on Aoko and to try to wake her. "Aoko, you need to get up!"

The girl was just starting to move when a noise downstairs got the Thief's attention.

 _"Crap..."_ He thought, knowing this could only mean one thing : someone had broke in, and he'd better face him else he was taking the risk of him finding his secret passageway.

"- Kaito ?

\- Lower Aoko... You take the secret exit, my mother will be here in a minute, leave with her and go hide...

\- But... " The long-haired woman's face was filled with startle, not really getting what was happening, her thoughts not really straight after such a sudden wake up.

"- No buts, now ! "

The girl nodded at her husband's serious face, knowing that, after all that time, he was aware of her abilities and would have asked her to stay if she had been able to help efficiently.

That or he wanted to protect her... But she couldn't be a hinder to him right now, in doubt, better obey.

Kaito smiled at her went she entered the secret passage then took his card gun out.

 _"Time to see who that unwanted visitor is... And make him understand going into a magician's house isn't the greatest idea ever..."_


	12. Chapter 12 - Attemps

**Heya !**

 **Time for the chapter of the day !**

 **I think you'll find it quite exciting... I'll see in your comments ; )**

 **o.O.o**

 **emmahoshi : Yes, that's quite handy, right ? ; ) Well, he organized everything to kill Kaito and since their situation was a bit desperate, the boys had to make dangerous choices... no luck for them, he was still around ^^; Hey, that's normal : I mean, most write more than 'thanks for the chapter' in their reviews, that would be a bit unfair to just say 'thanks!' when you spent some time on your review : ) And it also allows me to explain a lot of things I can't mention in the story so I'm glad ^^ But happy to know you appreciate it, your reviews also give me a warm feeling so it's mutual ; )**

 **Great : Yea, Kaito being able to switch qickly is good but when some unwanted eyes /ears are around... can sucks ^^;; Thank you ! ^^**

 **Anilover : Oh, was a small one, wait to see this one... xD You'll see in this chapter~ ! And nah, that's not the MKO as the boys finished it in the prequel : ) . The only one remaining is Vermouth but I won't have her in this story : )**

 **JarayZ : review chap 10 :Hmm ok, I'll be patient : ) Yup, 'rouge' Would be something like 'Rûji' (the 'g' in rouge is said as a 'j'), sounds a bit strange to me^^; Yea, I said 'badass' but it's more about her being powerful : ) We'll have an other example later : ) review chap 11: Yup, he's alright, lucky for him as his night was far from being over xD Oh, sorry ^^;; But I never heard about a contagious concussion... o.O ^^ Oh, broken comp ? Hope you didn't had to buy another one... that's crazy how I see a lot this year lot of people saying their comp broke... Is it a bad year for comp ? ^^;; Gratz, that's not him ; ) Answer in this chapter as to who it is : ). Wow, already ? I feel like it was yesterday you said your exams were over and one month of holidays was coming o.O Good luck with that then^^;;;**

 **Laury Rose : Hmm I think they quickly checked : after an explosion, most people would have ran away... How could they guess Snake was still around... ^^;; Yea, trouble ! : ) Eh, Pandora is coming pretty soon so he has to be aggressive... but don't worry, the story is far from being over ; )**

* * *

 **Chapter 12 - Attemps**

* * *

It was by pure reflex Kaito avoided the hit of his assailant, a tall and wide man, who attacked him as soon as he sneaked out of his room. There were no lights except for some streetlight coming from the windows but the Thief preferred to stay in the dark as, unlike the intruder, he knew perfectly the house. He threw a few cards to destabilize him and ran into the stairs, a grin on the face, before starting a countdown in his head.

 _"3... 2... 1 !"_ He thought, pushing a hidden switch on his left at the bottom of the stairs, his grin even wider.

The magician had tried this little trick on Heiji the first time, as the detective wanted to play a prank on him, and he looked almost as stupid as his enemy just know, except for the fact the man was falling from quite higher than the Osakan had been : that switch transformed the stairs into a sliding wooden slope, waxed with the greatest care to have it the most slippery possible.

With a loud bang, the man's head hit the wall facing the stairs, properly knocked down. The Thief didn't have enough time to rejoice though, as a sudden kick in the ribs sent him rolling on the floor. Catching his breath with a grimace, he quickly turned on himself so he could see who that new aggressor was. It was another man, of a shorter build, a mask with night goggles on the face and a brass knuckle on each hand, though he apparently knew how to use his feet as well.

 _"Just how many are there... ?"_ The Kid wondered at this second man, apparently not related to the first. Not having an answer yet, he shrugged, he had to focus on what he was doing : fighting in the middle of the night into his boxers after living an explosion wasn't his thing but he had enough hidden tricks in the house to be able to do without his Kaitou Kid's vest...

Ignoring his ribs, he got quickly on his feet, before jumping to avoid another hit, and rushed to a nearby vase, taking one of the fake roses out. He gently opened it to get the flash bomb hidden in it and smashed it on the floor, before throwing himself at his opponent who was kneeling on the floor, removing his goggles as the sudden light had made him blind and dizzy.

Kaito managed to block the guy's arms in his back and threw him on the floor, sitting on him to prevent him from moving.

"- Who are you working for ? What's your goal ? " He asked with a firm voice.

As the man remained silent, he twisted his wrist to be more convictive. "I'm not a nice guy..." He threatened, taking his creepiest voice to scare his aggressor, knowing that he wouldn't be able to do much more than that, being non-violent, but using the fact the man at his feet probably ignored that fact. "So speak before I get angry...

\- There's ... a contract on your head and on your pals'... " The man panted, not really wanting to fight anymore against someone who had been able to neutralize him barehanded.

Glad the man was on his stomach and couldn't see him as the greatest surprise appeared on his face, the Thief hissed in the other's ear. "Who ?!

\- A guy, with a stupid nickname on the web...

\- What's his name ?!"

As the man hesitated, he twisted his hand even harder with anger : not only he and Aoko but also his friends were in danger, he had to know who...

"- Snake !" The intruder finally exclaimed. "There's a bounty to kill each... of your three detective friends and an even bigger one for the guy... who can catch you alive, well, "breathing" as he wrote in his ad...

\- That bastard... " Kaito shook with rage, before something shiny caught his attention, coming from his back.

He jumped aside, avoiding a blade just at the last moment, but apparently that first was just a dummy as he grunted when he felt another hit his left arm and a last just below his ribs. Ignoring the pain, Kaito removed quickly the blades and brought his right hand to his ribs, before running towards the living room. That one was clearly taking the "breathing" to heart : "unarmed" didn't seem to be a part of the plan.

Hiding in a corner, panting, he saw his last aggressor, a tall and thin woman, enter the room and step on the fluffy carpet near the couch, trying to look for him.

The magician waited for her to reach a very specific place and pushed another switch, making the floor disappear under her feet : she fell through his favourite trapdoor, the one he used for the Christmas tree, to make it appear and disappear magically.

When the trap closed over her head, the Thief got out of his hideout and headed to his room, doing his best to control the pain throbbing through his body, wanting to get out as soon as possible as he wasn't able to fight anymore.

A bounty on his head, that explained all... And seeing he had 3 intruders just that night meant Snake had been quite generous... But did that mean he knew his identity ?! That was pretty bad news...

Opening a secret cupboard behind his casual clothes, Kaito took out his spare glider - he had asked one to Hakase, so he could use it during the other's maintenance or when Aoko was playing as a dummy - and grabbed his other costume to replace the one he had to leave on the explosion's site. Putting the vest wasn't agreeable, with the arm's wound, neither was moving, with his hurt side. He nevertheless got ready and jumped through his window, deploying his glider to go quickly as high as possible, hoping there wouldn't be any of his aggressors outside who would spot him. After he saw he managed to escape, he took out his phone he had retrieved on his bed to call Aoko to check if she was safe.

"- Aoko ?

\- Kaito, you ok !

\- Mostly... You're safe ? You're with my mother ?

\- Mostly ?!" The girl repeated with concern, without getting a comment, so she nevertheless answered him. "I'm with her in her car, we're going to that place we hid in four years ago, after those guys kidnapped me.

\- Ok, great. Aoko, the others are in danger also...

\- Yes, Chikage just told me... She has sent someone to the agency, just in case, as you told me Saguru went to work back there. You should check with the others... I let my phone at home, I can't help you...

\- Noted... Meet you in the hideout then, I'll keep you informed."

 _"How can she know about that..."_ The Thief wondered, adding this question to the already long list of the night's.

He gulped as a wind stronger than the others forced him to use his wounded arm, wondering how long he could go on like this, when the summer winds were playing tricks on him... Kaito dialled Kudô's number, hoping he forgot that one night to switch off his phone but nah, his call went straight to the voice mail, proving he didn't change his habits... Or that he was already in trouble.

His home being the closest, the magician decided to head there, while he was now trying to call Hattori. The man's phone rang, though without any answer. Unlike Shinichi, Heiji was always answering, to any hour of the day or the night. The only few times he wasn't answering was when he was on his bike and, if that was the case, finding him would be pretty complicated...

After once again leaving a message, hoping the Osakan would find it, he totally focused on his flight : it was hard enough in his condition and if he wanted to arrive as soon as possible...

o.O.o

Hakuba rubbed his eyes to get rid of the sleep that was settling in them. He had been working with Heiji until late that night and, when the Osakan left not long ago, he thought he'd be able to progress a bit more, though he had apparently been presumptuous : without company, he was starting to doze off.

The blond-haired suddenly jumped as the bell of the office rung. Yes, the lights were on and you could see it from the street but 2 am (2:03:45 to be more precise), wasn't exactly a time to look for a detective.

Sighing, he got up to see if that was anything urgent but had the displeasure to find no one at the door. Cursing after what seemed to be a bad joke, he was going to close the door when he noticed the parcel on the welcome mat. Passing his head outside, the half-brit tried to spot anyone in the street without any success so he just took the box with him to examine it.

Saguru put it in the middle of the room, on the table between the couches, and observed the parcel. It was kind of squarish, with a length of something like a foot. His name was on it, but also Shinichi's and Heiji's.

"- What a strange way to ask for a case..." He stated with an inquiring look at the cardboard box, before fetching a cutter to open the thing.

Inside was a cylindrical metal box, quite heavy, and a thin line at about 2/3 of its height implied it could probably be opened. The blond-haired tried to unscrew the top, but the item only clicked after half a turn and never wanted to move again after.

Hakuba had put the box back on the table and was still examining it, arms crossed against his chest as he was thinking, when the noise of a broken window just behind him made him miss one or two heart beats. Getting up in a second and turning to see what had broken the window, he could only stare with bewilderment as a black Kaitou Kid, surrounded by glass shards, was rushing towards him.

"- Kaitou... Corbeau... ?" He articulated, to stop in mid sentence when the other grabbed him and wrapped his cloak around him before he could even struggle. "What the... " The half-brit managed to ask, interrupted as he got his wind knocked out by both the man dragging him out unceremoniously towards the window and the fact the metal cylinder in the office decided to blow up, sending metal shards everywhere, like some kind of fragmentation mine.

He winced as he felt his forearms, a bit outside of the cape, were wounded, by the bomb or the broken glass of the window, he didn't know, and closed his eyes when he fell at high speed, his last image being a totally destroyed office, with its furniture turned into smithereens and shredded curtains.

The fall finally stopped as the Thief deployed his glider, gently raising into the air again, keeping the detective in his arms.

"- Are you alright ?" He asked with a concerned frown, spotting some blood on the young man's sleeves.

Opening his eyes, Saguru remembered he was still not breathing and took a deep breath, before detailing the man who just saved his life.

Kaitou Corbeau...

He had only faced him once, more than 4 years ago, when he didn't even know for sure Kaito was the Kid. They had spoken a bit after that of that case, as the magician had been suspecting, at least a little while, the imitator could have been his father.

The blond-haired gathered his memories of the pictures he had seen at his best friend's place. And indeed, the moustache, the eyes, the mocking face... Everything in that man looked like he was...

"- Kuroba Touichi..."

The man had a little smile, wondering what kind of truth he was going to serve to his son's best friend.

"- In the flesh." He finally decided with a malicious smirk.

o.O.o

Heiji finally arrived at his apartment, after a long and almost fruitless evening of research with Saguru. It was really hard to find any information on the Organization Kaito was struggling against and, even after those four years, they were dramatically lacking of intel on those criminals.

Getting down of his bike in the underground parking, helmet under the arm, he took out his phone and looked at it, having felt that someone had tried to call him and, by the late hour, this had to be important... Perhaps Hakuba had found something else after he left ?

But he frowned to see it was the magician. His friend had been hurt and needed a good night of sleep so why the hell was he calling so late in the night when the blond-haired had brought him home hours ago ?

The Osakan tapped his foot against the elevator's floor, waiting with impatience to reach his home and with it, a signal strong enough for him to hear his voice-mail.

"- Heiji ?" He heard as he unlocked the door, still frowning with worry.

"- Kazuha ? Ya still awake ?

\- Yea, I couldn't sleep... Not without ya..." She added with a malicious smile."Are ya alright ? Yer hairs are full of dust..."

The detective smiled, remembering he changed his clothes in the office but forgot to brush his hair. He had tried to look the most presentable possible not to worry his girlfriend but apparently didn't manage...

"- I'm alright... But it was a bit sporty tonight... "He grinned embarrassingly. "Can ya just wait a sec' ? Kaito tried ta call me an' it's not his style ta contact that late.

\- Ok, I'll be waiting in the bed, just don't be too long..." Kazuha yawned, heading back to their room.

Heiji dialled his voicemail and waited for the message to come.

 _" Heiji, this is Kaito. Snake sent some professional killers after us tonight... Can't explain much but meet where we hid Aoko four years ago when she was threatened... Anywhere else isn't safe, starting by the office and your home ! So if you're at one of those places, leave now ! And contact me once you're safe... I'm looking after the others."_

The Osakan had a deeply worried face when the message reached its end. Snake had their identities... How the hell did he... And he was also concerned with the Thief. His voice on the phone was... Of course, there was the worry but he seemed in pain, which implied he had probably faced some dangerous guys when he was already wounded and that he probably didn't get out of it unharmed.

Praying whatever Kami for the magician not to be hurt too seriously, the detective decided for now to just obey his orders and rushed to his room.

"- Kazuha ! We need ta leave !

\- Uh what ? Where ?" She asked unbelievingly, giving a startled look at her boyfriend, before noticing he was looking paler than usual and his face was now torn with worry, meaning he was everything but joking. "Just let me grab some clothes."

The girl quickly changed into thick clothes, knowing she'd be cold on the bike, even if it was summer. The Osakan, on his side, was walking back and forth in the living room, unable to stay still.

"- Let's go !" Kazuha said, grabbing her helmet.

They were just entering the elevator when Heiji noticed some guys coming from the stairs, having probably using them to avoid the bell of an incoming elevator that would have alerted the couple of their presence. Exchanging some bewildered look with them, the dark-skinned detective pushed the green-eyed girl into the elevator as the first bullet was fired, and pressed like a mad on the button to close the door.

"- What...

\- They're here ta kill me apparently... I'm sorry but ya'll be dragged in that, I can' leave ya behind, they saw ya were with me an' would have killed anyone in the apartment...

\- Like I'd have let ya alone..." The girl grumbled, putting her helmet on her head as they reached the parking.

"- Get in front o' me, I don' want ya behind..." Heiji ordered, putting also his helmet, afraid the girl could get a lost bullet if they dared to shoot at them on the road.

The guys had seen them, this was going to be a harsh ride but, with the bike, they should be able to lose them... At least he hoped.

"- Hold on tight..." The detective reminded his girlfriend, though she already knew that.

As he feared, as soon as he left the parking, a dark car followed them, with two men on board : one was driving and the other had already his gun in his hand.

Zigzagging as he accelerated, the Osakan did his best to avoid the bullets, going far over the speed limit in town, but his pursuers didn't seem to want to let go.

He soon found himself near the harbour, and saw, as a boat was approaching, that a lift bridge was going to open. He clenched his teeth, hoping he'd be able to lose them if he took the bridge at the right moment and turned towards it, crashing the accelerator.

A grin appeared on the dark-skinned face as he saw his timing was perfect when he faced the bridge that was just starting to move, meaning he could jump over it with the bike.

But his opponents saw through his plan and started both to empty their magazines at him.

Heiji thought for a moment he had managed his stunt but his back wheel suddenly burst, probably damaged by a bullet, and he couldn't control his trajectory anymore as he reached the top of the bridge.

Feeling he wouldn't be able to reach the other side, he accelerated as he could and grabbed Kazuha to jump with her in the water, while the bike flew high in the skies, swept along by his own momentum.

Both fell a bit apart in the cold water, and the Osakan, looking at his beloved to check if she was alright, suddenly paled several shades as his look was caught up by the bike that was going to fall down on them, and very probably on his girl.

"- Kazuhaaa !" was the last thing the woman heard as she saw her boyfriend throwing himself at her with a panicked face.

* * *

 **Soooo... many questions, ne~ ? ^^**


	13. Chapter 13 - Flight

**Heya !**

 **Let's see what happened to Shin and the explanations Touichi can invent... : p**

 **o.O.o**

 **Laury Rose : Yup, I warned you : ) I will explain it, but later in the story! Ah, answer as to how they got out of that in this chapter ; ) Yup, let's see what happened to our ex-small detective... ^^**

 **JarayZ : Oh, glad to know it's not that bad : ) Well, he was angry that guy ^^ And since the ones in his org' are already busy trying to get the stone, he had to look for external help :p Ahh, as I said to her, explanation later in that fic ; ) Yes, I also think it's a good way to end a chap... Used it a lot in this fic ^^;;; Hmmm well you'll see... ; ). Haha, long indeed xD But that's great : )**

 **Anilover : Haha, there are clearly more chapters ending with cliff than ones ending without in this fic xD We'll see what happened to Shin in this chap ; )**

 **emmahoshi : That could be an omake, yes xD Dunno if I'll write it though, we'll see, could be another project :p Of course, it's not because the manga was born in 198X or something like that that he won't evolve into new techs :p I chose to interpret Corbeau as Kaito's dad but I will indeed speak about the unfairness of that whole thing in this chapter and a bit later. Because yes that's awful, since Chikage very probably knew it too. Haha, yea, bruises ! ^^**

 **crimson sana : You think ? It was more Kaito's bad night in my opinion :3 Nah, it didn't happen... I mean, the last chapters are pretty ambiguous. I chose to read them as if Touichi was alive but that's not a fact, could be someone else. But thank you ; )**

 **Lady Paper : Haha, no worries, glad you liked it xD**

* * *

 **Chapter 13 - Flight**

* * *

Shinichi jumped as he was woken up by a thump against the shutter of the window near his bed. A bit surprised, he didn't plan to get up until a second thump hit the wood again, forcing him on his feet out of annoyance.

"- Hmm what's that..." Ran mumbled, still half asleep.

"- I'm checking, go back to sleep." The Tokyoite answered, putting a soothing hand on her shoulder before leaving the bed.

"- Hai hai..." He grumbled, his hand on the window to open it.

Among his relatives, only one person had the habit to knock at his shutters instead of his door so he was pretty sure he'd find the Phantom Thief on the balcony. Question was why.

"- Kaito !" Kudô called, not expecting to see the magician in such a bad condition : he was sitting on the floor of his balcony, holding his ribs, his white outfit tainted with scarlet around his waist and near his elbow. "What the... You were only hurt to the head !

\- Haha, well, a lot happened..." The indigo-eyed answered with a faint embarrassed laugh, before his face darkened and he tried to get up. "We need to leave the apartment... and now. Go and fetch Ran...

\- What's the matter ?" Shinichi asked, stepping forwards to help the Thief on his feet, concern on his face as he felt how feeble his grip was on his arm when he used it as a support.

"- There's a contract on our heads... I've been attacked at home...

\- Aoko is OK ?

\- Yea, she's with my mother... She sent someone to the agency to look... after Saguru and I left a message on Heiji's voicemail... couldn't get in touch with him."

The Tokyoite frowned with worry as he helped the Kid inside. Hattori was strong, he'd found a way out if he was attacked. At least, that's what he wished for...

"- Ran, wake up !" Kudô said with a strong voice after he led Kaito to a chair, now quickly putting some trousers and a jacket above his pyjamas.

"- What's the matter?" She yawned, blinking her eyes open and switching the light on. "Kaito, you're hurt ?!" She exclaimed after she spotted the bloody Thief, bringing a hand in front of her mouth with shock.

"- Good evening, Ran..." He smiled with a little wave. "First time we meet when I'm in that outfit since you learnt who I am... Sorry it's not as pure white as usual right now..." Kuroba stated with irony.

"- Ran, grab some clothes, we're leaving as ... " Shinichi stopped in mid-sentence as he heard some car doors outside.

Quickly going to the balcony, crouching a bit not to be spotted by anyone in the street, he saw at the bottom of his building two men going down from a car, with black tuxedos and, he saw it as a third left the vehicle, holsters under their armpits.

"- Crap... " The azure eyed whispered as he came back. " We got company... I suppose the glider is out of question Kaito ?

\- Yes, sorry... was hard enough to come here and the winds... are too tricky tonight for a beginner... And it's not like the 3 of us could have flied with it together...

\- Never mind then, we'll take the car. Ran, I'll be helping Kaito, you, open the way, you'll be more useful than me if we encounter anyone. And better keep the lights off, if we want to create some surprise.

\- OK."

Shinichi grabbed the Thief's arm to put it around his shoulder, doing his best to preserve his wounded side.

"- Hope Saguru is alright, you clearly need him..." He sighed, getting a little smile from his friend who was doing his best to stay conscious.

That pause, instead of relieving him a bit from his pain, made it even harder to force his body to move again. It had received too much tonight and wanted its owner to know.

After she slowly opened the door, the girl made a little wave of the hand to her boyfriend to tell him everything was clear, and the three of them stepped into the hallway, walking towards the elevators.

One of them opened in a ringing noise and the long-haired woman, knowing there was 99% chances the person to be an enemy at this hour, rushed her last steps to throw herself at the man going out, slamming him properly against the wall with a powerful kick in the face. She wasn't competing anymore but kept her training by a well-known teacher, making her even stronger than before.

She was contemplating her knocked out opponent so it was probably what she could call her warrior sense that informed her someone else was aiming at her. She dodged a bullet at the last second, a bit too late maybe, as her cheek was cut by the projectile, forcing her to close an eye.

"- Ran !" Shinichi called with worry, seeing there was another man going out of the elevator, the one who just attacked his beloved.

But the girl didn't mind her wound and threw herself after her aggressor : she knew she couldn't avoid this fight : he'd be a hindrance as he was on the way to their garage.

"- Shinichi, look out !" Kaito spurted as his look was caught behind them, where another man was sneaking, having very probably taken the stairs to attack them from behind. The azure-eyed pushed the Thief unceremoniously on the side to protect him but that move allowed the attacker to grab his arm and twist it behind his back, before taking his knife out to cut the detective's throat. Kudô jerked away to avoid the deadly weapon, just getting a scratch, though he felt his elbow took the aftershock of him trying to get free. Ignoring the pain in his arm, he sent his foot to his opponent's sternum and had a satisfied grin when he saw the man had his wind knocked out and his eyes rolled as he fainted.

Turning back to Kaito, he saw Ran was already helping him on his feet, a proud face turned to him.

"- Told you it was a good idea I taught you a bit of Karate..." She smiled, her expression indeed full of "I told you".

"- Ok, I admit..." Shinichi conceded, remembering their discussion.

He had been hurt in a case by the culprit and his girlfriend had been rolling her eyes at him, trying to convince him that soccer wasn't a self-defence sport and that he'd better learn something useful. He had hesitated to retort, as he stopped most of his criminals as Conan with a soccer ball but had finally accepted to follow her lead on that subject. Decision he was clearly not regretting right now.

"- Let's move, there are probably more of them..." He whispered, noticing with a bit of concern Ran's cheek was bleeding, and more than a bit.

The detective helped Kaito once again, a bit afraid as he saw he was even whiter than before : that little stunt he forced him to do clearly didn't help his condition to improve.

"- Just a bit further, ok ?" He told the magician to encourage him, getting a nod as an answer.

The girl led them to the underground garage, luckily without any other encounter, and Kudô settled the Thief in the back seat, while Ran was getting the first aid kit in the car's trunk.

"- Try to tend him as you can but stay on the floor, I don't want you to get a stray bullet...

\- Ok... Uh, won't you open the door ?" She wondered as she saw her boyfriend sat in the driver's seat and wasn't taking out the remote for the door.

"- It's too long, we'd be dead by the time it opens... Better surprise them... Hold on, this won't be a calm drive !"

The detective crushed the accelerator, blowing the wooden garage door as he threw the car against it, and sped up in the night, letting, for once, the powerful motor express itself at its full strength.

o.O.o

Hakuba stared at the moustached man. During twelve years, he had been considered as dead by the whole world, even to his own family, and he was admitting to him, apparently just on a whim, that he was Kaito's father and that he'd been alive all this time.

"- Why ?" He managed to articulate, still a bit startled but going quickly towards anger, perhaps even rage against the man who tricked his best friend.

The magician looked at the blond-haired and saw his expression, guessing without difficulty what the man was talking about.

"- At the beginning, just to avoid him to go through what you've been through a minute ago. " He answered, now looking in front of him, though his eyes seemed lost in his memories. "That Snake had discovered my identity, one night when he followed me after a heist... Jii had informed me Kaito had been rushed to the hospital in a serious condition due to an illness so I couldn't refrain myself from going there. In my rush, I didn't pay attention, as worried as I was. The man had followed me and had no problem to get my son's name and then to guess mine. A mistake I regret even today...

\- So you "died" so Snake would not go after them ?

\- Yes, we decided with Chikage it was the best solution. We wanted Kaito to grow up like a normal kid, to stay with his friends, to go to school... That wouldn't have been possible if we were fleeing from one place to another, risking our lives everyday...

\- But why are you silent even now ? Why did you even miss your only son's wedding ? Do you know how much that hurt him, that very day, not to have his father with him...?" Saguru stated, squeezing his fists with anger and ignoring the pain it provoked because of his wounds, understanding both Kaito's parents had been lying to him during those last 12 years, ignoring the young magician's pain, ignoring the fact he was putting himself in danger every night to finish a revenge that started with his father's death and had in fact no meaning since the beginning... All that he believed in and was fighting for was a lie...

"- I... regretted deeply not to have come to his wedding..." Touichi admitted as he gently tilted his glider to correct his trajectory. "But that would have meant for him he'd be forced to hide and give up an... almost normal life, here again. The Organization had his doubts on him, as he was my son, but they never found out he was the Kid. Until last night."

The detective stopped squeezing his fists to look with a questioning face at the Thief.

"- I found out that Kaito's identity had been discovered by Snake. My underground contacts informed me he offered a bounty for Kaito's capture, though he didn't mention he was the Kid, but there's no other reason for him to go after him... And he also put a contract on yours, Kudô-kun's and Hattori-kun's heads.

\- Bloody h... Do you mean all the others have been attacked? How are they ?!" Hakuba asked, a concerned expression on his face as he understood his friends were in a deadly danger.

"- I sent Chikage to Kaito's home and went to the office myself, hoping I'll find most of you... Chikage is with Aoko. Kaito also escaped but headed straight to Kudô-kun's apartment.

\- And Heiji-kun ?

\- Kaito had no news yet. And we are still waiting for him to contact us to confirm he secured Kudô-kun. "

Saguru sighed, disappointed to have so little news about his friends, praying they were all alright.

"- Let's hope none of them got a present as mine, I cannot believe pro-killers would use a bomb... How could you claim you killed the good target if you reduced him to smithereens ?

\- That one was a fragmentation device, Snake's favourite... Looks like he wanted to be part of the hunt...

\- What a mess..." Hakuba resumed, shaking his head. "Where are we going ? Aren't I too heavy for you?" He suddenly wondered, feeling the man's arms where starting to shake a bit.

"- I'm indeed used to lighter passengers but we're almost there, I'll be ok. We are going to a hideout of Chikage, apparently you know it, that's the one you used 4 years ago to hide Aoko. I'll be leaving you in the small park near of it.

\- Yes. I remember that place..." The detective said before he frowned, understanding that, if the man was leaving him in the park, it was very probably because he didn't want to be seen near of the house. "So you won't be coming ?

\- No, I won't." Kuroba admitted with a sigh. "Hakuba-kun, I need you to keep the fact I'm alive for you a little bit longer. The Organization is desperate, and therefore far more aggressive... The places I'm going to are too dangerous, even for Kaito, and I know I won't be able to convince him not to follow me if he discovers I'm alive... I'll give you the intel I have and everything else I may discover. Let the Volley comet pass, I'll come back to him after that."

The blond-haired locked his eyes in the man's, knowing that, if he accepted, this was going to be really hard for him to keep it quiet to Kaito. But this was also going to destabilize his best friend, and that was the last thing he needed this week. This was just a matter of days after all.

"- As a thanks for saving me, among other personal reasons... "Saguru started with a look at his bloodied arms, understanding he suffered very little damage only thanks to the man. "I'll be quiet. But as soon as the comet passes or if Kaito-kun gets his hands on Pandora, I want you to go to him the minute after that happens. And if you could help us "in the shadows" during the heists, I would appreciate it. The Organization is aiming for civilians now, to force Kaito-kun to make mistakes while protecting them. This is hellish to him, he won't admit it but he's dead tired.

\- That, I didn't know..." The man stated, with a slight touch of anger in his voice that had been so calm during the flight. He looked back at Hakuba, his face serious. "I agree to your conditions, detective."


	14. Chapter 14 - Link

**Heya !**

 **So, time to wrap up those cliffs (or almost :p), nah ? Last two are Heiji and Kazuha so this chapter will be a bit centered on those two.**

 **And hope you had a funny halloween ; )**

 **o.O.o**

 **Lady Paper : haha, right, his moustache is funny, so dandy-like xD Hmm, about Kaito, we'll have some news end of this chapter : ) (well, I can understand what you say, so it's good enough : ) Thanks for reviewing despite the fact it may be hard for you ! ^_^)**

 **Anilover : Yup !:D In a few days : ) In chapter 15, it'll be in 2 days. We're pretty near ! It's action, romance and we'll start a calmer part, though it won't last pretty long ^^;**

 **emmahoshi : Haha, yea, Ran is strong, that's not used enough in the manga / anime / some other fics ^^;; Ah, he said he would, after the Volley comet passes : ) Well, at the beginning, I wanted it to be 4-parter too but... I ended with a more than 5000 words chapter so I split it in 2... But yes, it's not that long ^^;; Ah, you'll see in this chapter : )**

 **Hebiaczek : Don't worry, this question will appear in chapter 15 : ) I'll have Touichi and Chikage speak more about this choice later in that fic. Of course ! And I remember how she was saying in the manga he'd be so good since his legs were already so strong thanks to football... : )**

 **PrincessesneedRocketLaunchers : They are girlfriend and boyfriend, thanks for spotting the mistake, I corrected it : )**

 **Laury Rose : Yup, clearly ! : ) And yes, having the former Kaitou Kid in the team should be quite helpful ^^ Ah, well, I wanted to solve the cliffs of everyone but there wasn't enough room in the chapter, it took too much place so answer in this chapter, a good part of it is dedicated to Heiji and Kazuha ; ) Haha, yes, it was useful for once him to drive like a mad xD Girls are always right, aren't they ? Karate over soccer seems more than logical :p**

 **Great : yea, there's a bit of action in this last chapter, right? ; ) Ah, in the manga, he receives a letter from his mother taunting him on details only Corbeau knew so he concludes Corbeau is Chikage. So no, he doesn't know.**

 **crimson sana :*bows* thank you : )**

 **JarayZ : Yes, that's what I think. And Habuka being someone calm he would be able to keep that info for him a few days. Wow, already ? Well, I had to create a few ones, would have been hard to just do with Snake and Spider, right ? ; ) And this story would have been pretty short ^^; I love it also, it's so fun to have Hakuba use it xD Hey, I like that side of your reviews so don't worry about that ; )**

* * *

 **Chapter 14 - Link**

* * *

Kazuha felt Heiji's wide arms circled her to drag them both under the water, just before the bike fell on them, the Osakan wanting to absorb part of the choc thanks to it. But he had been too slow and let go of the girl when he felt something heavy collide with his upper back, knocking his wind out, unable to breathe in as he was surrounded by liquid.

On her side, the green eyed woman managed to get her head out of the river unharmed, but quickly noticed her boyfriend was missing, very probably trapped and dragged to the bottom of the river by his bike. Without thinking twice, she breathed deeply and dived again, trying to open her eyes to see something, anything, but, even with the street lamps, the light was so faint a few meters below...

Noticing a shining reflect, definitively a rear-view mirror of the bike, Kazuha headed there and saw a darker shape below the vehicle : indeed the detective was being taken down by its weight. She quickly grabbed what seemed to be his hand and tugged it, bringing them both to the surface, helped by the fact the water made everything lighter.

"- Miss, over there !" A man from the ship that had been waiting for the bridge to open called, holding his hand to her as he saw she came out of the water.

The Osakan girl swam a little bit to reach the boat, worried not to have a reaction from her lover while she was keeping his chin above the surface.

Three crewmen helped them aboard, and they quickly focused on Heiji when they saw the woman was unharmed. With the assurance of a professional, one of them checked the detective's pulse and breathing before grabbing his shoulder to try to shake him awake as his vitals were encouraging.

That move made the green-eyed jump awake with a cough, sitting with a grimace and looking around him with startled eyes, before remembering what just happened.

"- You ok, Sir ? You'd perhaps better stay lying on the deck, we'll call an ambulance...

\- The police even !" Another suggested with a worried look.

The detective looked at them, before raising his look over his head to see the killers were still watching from the bridge, though their weapons were hidden. Nah, he would not have them follow him in a hospital. With huge effort, he composed himself to conceal the pain that was throbbing in his back.

"- Nah, it's ok, I'm good..." Heiji smiled as he could, with a slight move of the hand to stop Kazuha before she could protest. "Was a stupid accident, my tire blew up, couldn' control the bike anymore... No need fer the police or an ambulance! But could ya give us a lift ? With the bike at the bottom o' the river, hard ta go anywhere...

\- You sure you're ok ?" The one who was crouching to him wanted to confirm, giving up when the Osakan displayed a wide smile, shaking his head to confirm he was. "Ok... We're heading to the market, got some fish to sale. We can bring you anywhere on the way, would it do ?

\- Perfect ! Could we just ride inside ?" Hattori asked, wanting to be hidden from anyone looking from the outside. "It's a bit cold...

\- Sure."

The crewman helped Heiji on his feet to lead them in. The detective had one last look to the men on the bridge. Seeing they were leaving with the boat, they also moved, probably to follow them the best they could in their car.

"- Thanks again !" The green-eyed said as they brought them some covers. He then darkened a bit when he looked at the man who invited them in. "Sorry fer the hindrance... Couldn' tell ya as the guy was outside but my girlfriend's ex was after us, that's why I was so fast with the bike an' got that stupid accident...

\- After you ?

\- Yea, he's kind o' stalkerish... " Heiji confirmed, with a wink at Kazuha so she would play that role with him.

"- He was a former Yakusa... Followed us from Osaka..." She sighed, adding some background to her boyfriend's story, though she didn't know what his purpose was.

"- Couldn't you ask the police for help ?

\- Nah, we have no proof, the guy is too cautious... We're headin' ta Hokkaido, he shouldn' come 'til there..." The Osakan explained. "But I bet he's followin' us right now, so could ya just slow down under some bridge, fer us ta hide under it ? Like this he'll follow ya ta the fish market an' we'll be gone fer long...

\- You look like you're having it hard, for such a young couple..." The crewman observed with a look of compassion, before looking through the windows. "We'll reach the next bridge in something like 2 minutes, will be good for you ?

\- Perfect."

Five minutes later, Kazuha was helping Heiji out of the water. Now that they were alone, the man was at last able to stop to fake feeling good because that wasn't really the case, but he didn't want the crew to call an ambulance. He let himself fall on the floor with a pained grimace, bringing his hand to his shoulder to see it coming back with blood : a plastic part of the bike's seat had scratched him quite deeply, and he was still feeling some kind of heavy weight on his upper body that sent some throbs to his spine any time he moved. He'd been lucky not to break his neck, but he wasn't getting unharmed from his little stunt.

"- Hey, ya ok ?" The girl asked with worry as she saw his face, sitting near him.

"- Will do... " The detective answered, composing himself to show her a reassuring smile. "Thanks fer the help, that could have turned nasty...

\- ... Could have ?! If I didn't come ta fetch ya, ya'd still be at the bottom of the river with a bike on yer head, ya Ahou !" The girl yelled as she hit again and again Heiji's chest with her fists. "When - will - ya - stop - putting – yerself - in - such – dangerous - situations ?!

\- Ouch ! Boke ! That wasn' my fault, what the heck d'ya think ya doin' ?!" Hattori tried to stop her, catching her wrists.

"- Punishing ya for being so imprudent…

\- What ? I told ya not ta worry about me anymore ! Call it karma or what, look at that, I bring ya bad luck ! Ya don' want me in yer life !" The detective pointed out with guilt in his voice, letting her arms go.

"- Ya wish, Hattori Heiji !" The green-eyed girl said, locking his eyes. "But let me say it clearly so it'll go through that thick head of yers : ya will stop making choices for me and decide for myself what's better for me. I know better than ya what I want and what I want is ya. Period.

\- But Kazuha…" Heiji started, to be silenced with Kazuha's lips as she kissed him.

"- No buts." She declared, her face reddening a bit with embarrassment. "If ya think I'm stalking ya or something, ask Ran for advice on how ta sue me. Else, I'll stay. And I'll drag ya back home by the ears if I need ta when all this is over! I won't let ya go !

\- Crap, Kazuha..." The Osakan laughed at her serious face."It's almost as if ya put again those handcuffs around our wrists.

\- I'm indeed thinking of a tiny version of those metal rings.

\- Uh… WHAT ?! Tôyama Kazuha, did ya just propose me ?!"

The girl's cheeks took a deep scarlet colour, going up to her ears. "Delicacy isn't yer thing, Heiji… " She stated with a faint voice.

"- I... I know, sorry… " He said, a bit red himself.

"- So ?

\- So what ? I have ta answer already ?!

\- Oh yea, I won't let ya go, when I see how long it took ya ta answer when I asked ya out." Kazuha reminded him with a glare.

"- Uh, sorry again about that…" The detective apologized with an embarrassed face. "Of course I do, Ahou, though I don' understand why ya're interested in such a dangerous goofy as myself…

\- A secret makes woman woman." The girl smiled mysteriously.

"- Uh, Kami, don' use that expression, please..." Heiji asked with a chill, remembering it was Vermouth's catch line.

"-Ah, why ?

\- Never mind..." He brushed away, not wanting to speak about that now. "Come here !"

The green-eyed woman did as told and approached him, to stay frozen as he grabbed her sleeve to force her to sit near him and put a gentle kiss on her lips.

Carefully putting her head against his chest, the girl had a satisfied smile when her lover put his arm around her, helping her to feel warmer. Even in summer, hanging around with drenched clothes wasn't agreeable.

"- What now ?" She softly asked.

"- Well, our phones are soaked so if we want ta ask someone ta pick us up, it'll be through a phone booth...

\- Do you remember any phone number ?

\- Yup, Shinichi's. Let's hope Kaito found him. Think ya could find some phone ? I don' think I'll be able ta move around too much right now, sorry...

\- Yea, just tell me the number." Kazuha volunteered as she got up with a determined face.

o.O.o

With one last look at the black shape going back to the skies, Hakuba walked to the house where Chikage and Aoko hid for a while after the girl had been kidnapped, soon joined by Kaito that time Bourbon discovered his identity.

Turning one last time his head around, the blond-haired finally dared to knock on the door, to be welcomed by Chikage.

"- Come in !" She rushed him, worry in her eyes as she looked at the street, before closing the door behind him with precipitation.

The detective blinked as he got in, dazzled by the light after his eyes got used to the darkness of the night, and, before he could even remove his shoes, Aoko grabbed him into a firm hug.

"- I'm so glad you're ok, we didn't have any news from you or Heiji, I was starting to worry..." She stepped away and looked at Hakuba with wide eyes when she saw his wounded forearms. "You've been attacked ? Are you ok ? Obviously not... I'm getting the first aid kit...

\- Thank you, it's not that painful but I'd better tend those." He admitted with a bored look at his hands.

The girl nodded and went to fetch some bandage, so he turned to Chikage. "Do you mind if I call Baaya ? I'll ask her to retrieve my medical material at my father's home and to bring it here...

\- Sure."

Thirty minutes later, Saguru was waving a last thank you at Baaya, who had been extremely fast to respond to his request, despite the fact she was retired and therefore not living near the Hakuba's household anymore.

The girls had helped the medic to tend his hands, mostly scratches and burns by the hot metal expelled by the bomb, though one wound on his left forearm would have needed stitches but he wasn't have been able to do it himself even with his material. It's just that he wanted to have it in case, hoping nothing serious happened to his friends but knowing that, if the guys didn't hesitate to send a bomb at him, his friends probably had it hard too.

"- Chikage, open the garage, this is Shinich's car !" Aoko stated as she saw his friend's car going into the alley.

The woman did as told and the three of them went straight to the garage to welcome the newcomers.

"- Kaito needs help !" Shinichi said with hurry as he got out of the car to open the passenger's door. "We couldn't take him to the hospital, with those guys after him..."

Hakuba paled and went to the door, to see Ran's hands were red with blood as she had compressed a wound on the Thief's side and it seemed more than serious. "Chikage-san, I need a table long enough to put him on, do you have that ? Put clean sheets on it if you can !

\- In the living room. Aoko, help me and fetch the sheets !" The woman ordered, getting the girl out of her stillness as she was struck with horror to see her husband in such a condition. "Quick !"

The two men helped the now unconscious magician out of the car, to lead him cautiously to the living room, both hindered by their wounds but not mentioning it. Kaito was the one who needed attention and now.

After Aoko threw a sheet to offer a clean surface for the Thief, Shinichi stepped back once the Kid was laid on the table with the help of Chikage, feeling his phone was vibrating.

"- Kazuha ?!" He recognized, as the number wasn't giving him any indication of who was calling. "Are you with Heiji ? You're ok ?!"

The Tokyoite paled a bit as she told him about them being attacked and explained that they needed a lift as Heiji wasn't really able to walk around.

"- Ok, give me the address, I'm sending you someone."

After he confirmed he got the meeting place right, he hung up and turned to the others. "Heiji and Kazuha are alive but they'd need a lift, Heiji's been hurt apparently so they can't come here by their own means..."

The others looked at him with a dark face, most cursing Snake for being able to do such damages to them in only one night.

"- I'll fetch them then..." Ran volunteered, feeling she'd be more useful over there : Aoko and Chikage would want to stay by Kaito's side and Shinichi had hurt his elbow, so that driving a car was a bit difficult to him, she saw it when he brought them in.

"- Take my car, the keys are on the little table in the entrance." Chikage proposed, forcing herself to think straight instead of just staring at her wounded son. "It'll be more discreet, yours stands out a bit too much...

\- Thanks."

Shinichi told her the address, somewhere near the Sumida River, and she left the room, with one last look at Hakuba putting a pair of gloves, Aoko on his side to help him.

 _"Hold on, Kaito..."_ She prayed, closing the front door behind her after she grabbed the keys.


	15. Chapter 15 - Plans

**Hi there !**

 **Time for a calmer chapter, it's been a long time, ne ? xD**

 **Just a little break before next arc :p**

 **o.O.o**

 **Hebiaczek : Haha, yup, I don't kill ! Usually... :p But he's in my top 3, yea : ) (else he wouldn't be wounded ? That's quite a reflexion to have... xD) Yea, looks like being with Kazuha helps him having intelligent reflexions instead of just rushing :p . Ah, we'll have more about that in chapter 16 : ) To be honest, after reading the latest chapters of the manga, I was sure he was alive... So I tried to find some reasons for both his parents (because of course Chikage would know then) to hide it from him. I'm not saying I'd prefer to see Touchi as dead but him alive without some good arguments would just make him a jerk o.O**

 **Anilover : Thanks ; ) Yup, I'm not a main char killer, not without a bunch of warning... I think I'll need to remember that later to my readers in that story because it'll turn quite dark later :p Yup, let's see how they can get rid of those killers : ) Comet will be passing in chapter... Oh 16, we're soon there ! :3**

 **emmahoshi : Ah well, as I said my heath hasn't been great "lately" (it's been a month already o.O) so I tend to do stupid mistakes like "unharmed" or husband instead of bf... Be indulgent towards a lil' sick frenchie xD I corrected it at least : ). But looks like I did it a lot in the other chapters, oopsie ^^;;; Haha, yea, it was fun to write and I couldn't imagine Heiji brave enough to do that : p Ah, well, he has a bigger role this time than in "alliances", really xD Yea, myself, I only know mine and my parents' house... Else I just remember 2-3 numbers, clearly not enough to find the whole number ^^;; We're becoming lazy :p**

 **Laury Rose : Maa, you'll see ; ) Haha, I bet it would hurt his pride but Heiji can be so slow... See the current manga ? Kazuha tried at least 2 or 3 times before he did to ask him out, she's the bravest of the 2 ! : ) Eh, they got a perfectly trained doc' with them everything will be ok ; )**

 **Great : Yup : ) Haha, yea, I like this idea of our Osakan having to make up a story of them eloping on the spot ^^**

 **JarayZ : Don't thank me for that ^^ Oh, sorry, I corrected it... As I said, being sick nowadays, I tend to let stupid mistakes appear ._. Haha, thanks : ) Well, since Heiji is my fav and since I'm more into canon's couple, I'd be a bit disappointed not to be able to write them at least correctly xD You'll see ! ~**

* * *

 **Chapter 15 - Plans**

* * *

After a sigh of exhaustion, Hakuba's eyes fell on the table his friend was laying on, taken aback by how fragile he looked, sweaty and pale due to his wounds. Chikage was washing the stitches he just did on his side and Aoko was finishing the bandage of his upper arm.

The wounds had not been extremely serious but the Thief had been pushing himself too hard, flying through Tokyo and fighting with Shinichi and Ran, after all that already happened that night, and was pretty much exhausted.

 _"Bloody idiot..."_ The blond-haired sighed as he sat on a nearby armchair, removing his gloves to take his head in his hands, closing his eyes to rest them a bit.

"- You ok ?" Shinichi asked from the nearby armchair he was sitting on, having forced himself to sit as he saw he was just circling around his friends treating Kaito and wasn't of any use to them, perhaps even disturbing them. "- Yes, just tired...

\- No wonder after what happened..." Chikage admitted, removing some sweat on her forehead with her arm.

Her face was dark and tired, so unusual for such a cheery woman : she had already seen her son being hurt, but it wasn't an experience she liked and being forced to treat him in the living room of one of her hideouts wasn't something she appreciated. She was finishing recovering the wound she just washed with a compress when she heard the front door open.

"- It's us." Ran announced as they came in, a smiling Heiji and a half asleep Kazuha on her heels. "Just go lie upstairs, Kazuha, you're sleeping on your feet...

\- I'll be ok, go." The dark-skinned detective answered to her silent question as she turned her head to him.

"- Take the second door on the left, it's is free..." Aoko advised, as she came to meet them, drying her hands in a towel.

The Osakan girl nodded, putting a gentle kiss on the corner of Heiji's lips, and headed up to the second floor, too tired to fight.

"- How's Kaito ?" The long-haired girl asked as she came into the living room, the green-eyed detective still following her.

"- Saguru-kun looked after him, it seems it's not as serious as it looks like... It's just that he should have been treated instead of rushing into another fight..." Chikage pointed out with a small scolding smile at Kaito.

"- Good news " She concluded with a relieved sigh, having been impressed by the bleeding when she was trying to help him in the car.

"- He's always the kind ta push himself too much..." The dark-skinned concluded with a faint smile, letting go of the worried expression that was on his face as he saw when entering Kaito was lying on a table, unmoving, and Hakuba who seemed exhausted, with his head in his bandaged hands.

"- He's not the only one ... Are you ok, Heiji ?" The Tokyoite asked, knowing from Kazuha's call he was supposed to have been hurt, though he wasn't really showing it.

"- Mostly bruises, it's ok, nothin' that needs ta be examined tonight..." He lied, waving his hands in front of him, glad his dark clothes hid his wounds, feeling the blond haired was more in need of sleep than him of medical care. "I'll just take that couch, I'll ask Saguru ta look at me tomorrow." The detective stated, going to the nearest couch to lie on his stomach.

Ran frowned suspiciously, as she had noticed Kazuha had looked worried about him but didn't comment, as he also seemed pretty tired. " We should try to get some sleep then... Shinichi ?

\- Yea, coming, if you don't need us anymore..." He said, getting up and grabbing a bandaid to hold it to his girlfriend for her to put it on her cheek's wound.

"- Sure. First door on the left." Aoko indicated with a little wave at them when they left the room, before gently putting her hand on the blond-haired man's shoulder. " Saguru ?"

Hakuba jumped awake, surprised himself to have fallen asleep.

"- You should go and rest a little bit in a bed..." Chikage advised as she got up to stretch herself a bit after she finished.

"- But I should be waiting for Heiji-kun, he was in need of medical care apparently...

\- He said it could wait tomorrow, he's already snoring in the couch over there..." Aoko pointed out with a gesture of the hand towards the Osakan. "So go to sleep, you also need rest."

The half brit nodded, rubbing his eyes with his hand, before regretting it when he felt it was painful. Stitching someone with wounded hands wasn't the best idea he had had in his life. "OK... But wake me in a few hours... And someone must look after Kaito, he absolutely needs to stay still, stop him from getting up, even if he wants to.

\- We will." Chikage assured. "Now, to bed !"

o.O.o

Taken out of his sleep a few hours later, Heiji hissed with pain as Saguru tried to move his jacket when he started to examine him, having noticed some dried blood near his neck.

"- You idiot, you should have let me look after that last night..." He cursed when he understood the Osakan was hiding what was probably a large wound under his top and that the blood had dried along with the cloth, meaning he couldn't remove it without making it bleed.

"- With yer wounded hands an' yer closed eyes ?" Hattori pointed out with irony.

"- I could have done it and that would have been far easier to tend than now..." Hakuba retorted with a dark glare, grabbing a pair of gloves and a pair of scissors. "Come to the shower, I'll try to humidify the scab."

Getting up with difficulty, Heiji followed the blond-haired, trying to keep his arms still as each move was hurting the wound in his back.

The medic had him sit in the bath tub before unceremoniously turning the water on and spraying it on his friend's upper body.

"- Hey, it's cold !

\- Stop being a baby, that's your fault." Saguru flatly said, annoyed by his friend's stupidity to have let his wound without care. "What happened ?

\- Kinda received my bike on the head after we fell in the Sumida River...

\- What ?!"

Heiji explained to him quickly what happened, making his friend frown, knowing that the water around Tokyo was everything but clean.

"- You've been quite lucky, the water probably weakened the shock or you would have been killed on the spot..." He concluded, shaking in head with unbelief. "Ok, I think I can try now, you're ready ?

\- If I have ta..."

Hakuba put his hands on the jacket to remove it of the most delicate way possible. The Osakan wasn't complaining but he could feel him shake under his hands and he was sure it wasn't from cold. Once the vest had been removed, he cut the shirt with the scissors he had brought with him and had at admiring whistle at the wound below.

"- Congratulations, you've earned yourself some stitches..."The blond haired concluded as he washed his friend's back to get rid of the dried blood remaining, noticing a long gash on his right scapula. "And you've got some of the nicest colours I've ever seen on a bruise..." He finished with irony, looking at the bruise going from almost one shoulder to another, visible even on the dark skin.

"- I knew I'd be able ta impress ya one day... I just didn' thought it was goin' ta be in a shower..." Heiji said, trying to put a grin to replace the previous pained grimace he was hiding. "Hey !" He grumbled as Saguru slapped the back of his head.

"- You deserved it...

\- ... Perhaps this time..." The Osakan admitted with a guilty face.

"- Stay here, I'm getting my material."

Thirty minutes later, after he put the clean clothes Aoko had brought him on Hakuba's request, the dark-skinned detective walked into the living room to see Saguru near a Kaito attached to the table he was lying on.

"-... cannot believe you wanted to get up so hard your mother had to tie you to that table... You need to rest !" was saying the blond-haired, an annoyed expression on the face.

"- But I hate to stay still..." Kaito pouted with a childish face. "And I hate having someone who knows my tricks and uses them against me..." He added with a glare at his mother who returned him a provocative smile.

"- I see ya're better, Kaito..." The Osakan stated, amused by the Thief's determination to get up when he should rest.

"- Yo, Heiji ! Sorry I won't get up to greet you but my mother and Saguru suddenly decided they were turning to bondage... It's so hard to have nice looks...

\- Kaito..." Chikage growled with an icy-cold glare at him.

The green-eyed man snorted at what looked like a comic duo and took a seat to rest his wounded back. "So, what was that mess about ?" He asked, after seeing everyone was in the living room except for Kazuha so they could speak freely about Kaito's ... night occupation.

"- To sum up..." Shinichi started, letting go of the newspaper Chikage had fetched for him to look at his best friend. "... Snake knows Kaito's the Kaitou Kid...

\- Kaito is... Kid ?" Kazuha asked as she entered the room with a yawn, stopping halfway to stare at the Thief.

Her startle turned quickly to anger as she noticed the magician had a slightly bored sigh, not even denying or turning it to a joke, and the others were exchanging embarrassed looks.  
"- What the... ?" The green-eyed girl managed to articulate.

"- Kazuha, sorry we had to hide it to you but I'm the Kaitou Kid." Kaito admitted with another sigh. "I have my reasons but...

\- "we" ? Did ya all know ?!" She snapped, looking at the others with accusative and questioning eyes. "Is that Conan's secret all again ? Leaving me aside like that time...

\- Kazuha !" Ran firmly said before the girl went into a rampage, knowing that neither Kaito nor Heiji were fit enough to face her when she was angry. "Come with me, I'll explain to you.

\- I'm coming with you." Aoko also volunteered. "Let's make some sandwiches at the same time.

\- I'll help !" Chikage proposed, knowing the men would be happy to be able to speak of the case just between them.

Before Kazuha could even snap back, Ran grabbed her arm and dragged her to the kitchen, followed by the two other women.

"- Thanks..." Kaito said as they left, with recognisance in his voice.

"- She'll be a pain..." Heiji concluded as he saw the face she had when she left. "Never mind, so we were sayin' Snake knows yer identity ?

\- Yea..." The magician darkly confirmed before frowning. "I'll explain but could anyone free me first ? I'm going to hurt my neck, looking at you from that table... And it's not really comfy... Pretty please ?" He added, with a pledging look at Hakuba.

The blond-haired glared at him, knowing he'd say yes eventually but wanting to make his point first. "I can allow you to go sit on the couch but that's the only move you'll have the right to do. Is that clear ?

\- Yes !"

Grabbing his pair of scissors, Saguru freed the Kid and Shinichi came to help to support him to lead him to the nearby couch. The injured Thief had wanted to reject their help first but he quickly noticed it was hard enough just to keep a straight face and, he had to admit, only in his mind of course, that it was perhaps a bit too early to walk on his own.

Once Kaito was settled, the half-brit grabbed the Tokyoite's arm, to see he was grimacing with pain.

"- Are you all going to hide your injuries from me ?" He dramatically sighed, rolling his eyes. "Let me look at that, we can talk in the meanwhile. Kaito-kun ?

\- Yes. I think Snake discovered my identity during that bombing. And, bad news, he very probably saw you all.

\- Those aren't good news, indeed..." Shinichi agreed with a long face, keeping an eye on Hakuba who was testing his elbow. "That's why he sent some guys at us ?

\- Yes, apparently there was a bounty to kill you all and catch me, that's my mother found out..."

Shinichi had a little groan of pain as the blond-haired shook, his elbow still between his hands, knowing it wasn't Chikage who discovered that information, and feeling guilty not to be able to share what he knew.

"- Sorry ! It seems it is just sprained, I'll bandage that to immobilize it a little while." He quickly apologized, displaying an expression of embarrassment that wasn't really usual on his face as he got up to fetch his material. "They weren't only killers after us, he even came in person to the agency..." He pointed out, to change the subject.

"- What happened there ?" Heiji wondered, his eyes on the half-brit's hands.

"- He sent a fragmentation device in a package with our names on it... I was tired, I guess that's why I didn't identify it first but I ... could escape just at the last moment." He answered, trying to stay evasive. "I'm rather unharmed but we'll have to redecorate the office...

\- Uh, I hope it's covered by the assurance..." The Osakan wished with an annoyed face. "I can' afford it an' don' want ta have ta ask fer money ta my dad again..." He admitting with a chill, remembering when he had tried to ask for a loan to be a detective to his father and that had been quite the disagreeable moment.

"- Haha, don't worry, with my baito, I'll be able to pay most if we need too." Shinichi proposed with a little smile.

"- I won' mock it ever again..." The green-eyed said fervently, getting himself an ironic and sceptical look from the Tokyoite.

"- I think we should ask Megure-keibu to investigate the office, he may find some information about Snake that could help us on the device or what's left of the parcel..." Hakuba advised, looking at the azure-eyed detective, knowing he was the one with the most important affinities with the policeman.

"- I'll do it. Got to imagine something though, I don't want him to force us into a protection program if he learns we've got a contract on our heads...

\- Clearly... " Kaito agreed, with a dark face. "I don't want to have to explain why a random magician is being hunted by pro killers...

\- For that point, I think I'll be able to help you." Chikage said as she came back alone with some coffee and tea. As she got four interrogative looks at her, she explained. "Thanks to my... contacts, I think I'll be able get rid of those contracts. Just have to spread the rumour Snake doesn't pay, this could even be hard on him, those guys don't like the ones who don't abide to their promises...

\- Yer contacts seem pretty efficient, Kuroba-san." Heiji pointed out with admiration.

"- It's not because I'm retired that I lost my touch with those things..." She smiled maliciously.

"- Well, that'd be helpful." Shinichi admitted with a relieved face. He didn't like the idea of them being hunted, above all when their pursuers didn't mind to imply the girls... "Let's try to gather some information on our side. We can't just suffer the Organization's attacks without fighting back...

\- But we couldn't find anything in four years..." Kaito pointed out with a depressed sigh.

"- With all their recent activities, I think there may be some new elements." Shinichi hoped, with a look at the others. "Heiji, Saguru, could you check with your fathers ? I'll see with Megure-keibu, I asked him to open both eyes during the last heists, he may have seen something.

\- And we still got to find Pandora..." Aoko remembered, putting a plate of sandwiches on the table. "I'll work on it with Kaito, so I'll make sure he doesn't try to move too much..." She added with a hard look at her husband.

"- Let's get ta work then!"


	16. Chapter 16 - Death

**Hi guys !**

 **I think I already mentionned this fic would be darker than "Alliances", well, there it is, we'll be stepping in a darker part with that new chap.**

 **So just a friendly remember, because I don't want you to hate me too much at the end of this chapter : I'm not a main char killer so I wouldn't kill any of them without a bunch of warnings. And I didn't put any for that fic :p  
**

 **Please keep that in mind until the end of that story : )**

 **And now, let the fun begin ! :D**

 **o.O.o**

 **Hebiaczek : Ah, well, it's funny to picture him scolding them for being a bunch of idiots not minding their own health : ) He's not the extravert type so I liked the idea of him being mother-like for them :3 Ah, this chap, explanation through Chikage point of view. Hope it won't dissatisfy you too much since you're clearly eager for those and I don't feel I'm writing anything extraordinary... There'll be Touichi PoV soon too, but we'll be turning around the same kind of arguments.**

 **Laury Rose : I think Heiji will have a lot of late work, just the 2 of them, so she wouldn't kill them all xD But well, she had to know, and with them being so shaken after those attemps, no wonder there was a slip ^^; Yea, a bit more explanation and let's go for jewel's hunt once again ! :D Hope the eye won't be too hard on you... :p**

 **emmahoshi : I hope too, I really don't like being sick a long time like that ._. Haha, just like me, I wrote it at 'me' in my contacts and when ppl wondered why I didn't know it, I'd answer, exactly as you said: 'why learn it, it's not like I'm going to call myself...' ^^ So, yes, that's it, just like for Ran, they couldn't really betray Kaito with a bunch of ppl knowing who he was. Haha, that cry from Heiji was, as we say in here, 'coming straight from the heart' but don't worry, it's just an observation, not a complain, and he'll do his best to redeem himself later : ) I didn't want to picture the whole thing in 'Moon' because we were in the same situation than in 'Alliances' when she discovered Conan's ID and I didn't want to repeat that. Just know Heiji (and a bit Ran) has a lot to do with her being calm about it later in the story : ) Yup, I liked this side of Saguru ^_^**

 **Anilover : Who knows ? ~ Ah, well, it's more Touichi's contacts who are creepy than hers, he's of course the one who dealed with that ; )**

 **JazayZ : Thanks : ) It's on the right way I think, so hope is allowed xD As long as those are the pairs you like, no matter, right ? That's how you describe pairs the best, when you're totally into it :D Yup, she was the last one ^^;; We don't see her a lot at the beginning so we tend to forget her a bit ^^; Don't forget he's a "kid", they have what seems like limit-less energy :p I thought she was cool in the manga so did my best to keep her that way, turning her strong but light-mooded, just like Kaito : ) Hmm let's see what happens with Snake... (haha, don't drink too much tea, you'll never sleep like that xD)**

* * *

 **Chapter 16 - Death**

* * *

Three days later, Hakuba was changing Kaito's wounds' bandages, lost in his thoughts as his hands were working by themselves on a task that was now almost intuitive to him.

The Thief was now able to hang around a bit, the blond-haired had allowed him to, knowing how quick he could be to recover. He was nevertheless forcing him to rest as often as possible, since he was the kind to be able to ignore his pain and hurt himself just because he'd think it could be fun to play a prank to one of his friends.

The others, including him, were now doing better after a forced but necessary rest as Chikage was trying to get rid of the bounties on their head. The woman had been coming back the previous evening with a wide smile, to announce her contacts had confirmed to her Snake's offers were now discredited and therefore null and void. Noticing how she stressed the word "contacts", the half-brit met her eyes and knew. Knew she was speaking about Touichi, and knew the man had informed her he had told the truth to him. Unfortunately, Saguru hadn't been able to find some time to confront her since, despite the fact he was eager to, angry to know she hid the truth, whatever the reasons were, to her son.

As promised, Kaito's father had been sending him the information he had on the Organization. The detective now knew the criminal group was approximately made of fifty members : the Boss, the two men just below him and five agents like Snake, the ones remaining being low-level members, just like the ones who could sometimes would with Snake as a backup, wrapped in beige trench coats.

Touichi had been able to neutralize the international branch of the Organization that had settled in the USA : after a long fight, he recently had been able to have them arrested for jewellery thefts, and could even have one of the sub-Bosses in jail, with two other main agents.

He hadn't any intel yet on their Japanese headquarters : he had tried to follow them once or twice since he came back in the country but they never went the same direction. He was even wondering if it wasn't some kind of mobile place, though he couldn't identify its type. The Organization was clearly incredibly rich, and they could have found loads of ways to escape and to hide.

Hakuba had shared the information with the others, claiming it came from his own father to hide the real source, annoyed by the fact he had to lie but... He promised. Kaito had nevertheless noticed something was wrong in his friend's behaviour but the blond-haired had ignored his comments or his looks, to the point he even tried to avoid to be with the Thief alone, knowing he wouldn't be able to hold it much longer.

It was hard on Saguru. He didn't like to see his best friend hurt, didn't like to have to hide the truth about his father to him, didn't like to remember that vision of the Thief's death Akako had shared with him. He couldn't help but being dark and silent, burying his guilt and fears under a straight face, though he wasn't as nearly as good as Kaito for that.

Well, the comet would be here pretty soon, he just had to clench his teeth and stay quiet a bit longer.

"- Saguru !" The magician asked with concern. "You sure you're ok ? You were daydreaming. Once again. It became quite usual since you've been attacked... You didn't hurt yourself more than you admitted at least ?

\- No, just the hands, no need to worry." Hakuba confirmed, putting back on the table the roll of bandage he had kept in the hand as he froze, lost in his thoughts. "I'm just a bit tired..." He concluded, nevertheless avoiding his friend's eyes.

"- Take care of yourself then, we need you at your full strength with the Volley comet coming in two days...

\- Kaito !" Aoko yelled as she came in. "I got it ! I think I found Pandora!

\- What ?!"

Five minutes later, the whole group was in the living room, with Aoko pacing back and forth in the middle of it with a newspaper in the hands.

"- The Sunrise Ruby... That necklace could really be the Pandora..." She was saying.

"- Mind to develop ? "Shinichi asked, wondering how she could be so sure of herself : despite the fact she was now experimented in jewels thanks to the fact she was helping the Kid, deducing from just a newspaper she had found the right stone was a bit...

"- It's a jewel that had disappeared during WWII in Germany and has been found one week ago in Japan in an old train that had been buried by a landslide and uncovered as another happened, because of last week's typhoon in the south."

The girl opened the newspaper to read the article out loud.

" The stone was apparently considered as a kind of Grail during the European Middle Age. Back then, its reddish colour and the fact its centre, a bit darker than the rest, looked like a trapped capsule of blood, had been interesting both scientist and religious men. Later, some discovered that, in addition to those particular aspects, the symbols carved on the gold necklace referred to its use in ancient medicine, though its effects weren't mentioned. Since no one could see through the Sunrise Ruby's secret, its properties have been classified as belonging to folklore and it has been exposed for its uncommon features in a French museum until 1942, year during which a German scientist, believing those old rumours, commandeered it for his researches. The stone was brought back to his country and studied until the very end of the third Reich. Feeling his nation was about to lose, the scientist took it with him to Japan, where he hoped to be able to resume his researches discreetly. That never happened, as the train he was in had disappeared and that, until last week.

"An exposition with the stone and the different items found in the train will open tomorrow night, in the Edo-Tokyo museum. The Sunrise Ruby is, in the meanwhile, kept in a secret place under heavy security."

Aoko let the arm holding her newspaper fall along her body, an interrogative expression on her face as she looked at Kaito and his friends, waiting to know what they thought of her discovery.

"- Ancient medicine..." Hakuba frowned.

"- Lost for a long time..." Shinichi added.

"- An' very probably a doublet. "Heiji concluded, turning to Kaito. " This seems almost too good ta be true...

\- And just when we thought we'd never find it, being so close to the passage of the comet..." The indigo-eyed stated with a dreamish look.

"- So, what do you think ?" The magician's wife wondered.

"- That I've got a heist to prepare for tomorrow's night !" The Thief grinned with one of those expressions he could have when he was in his Kaitou Kid's outfit.

"- 'We' " Saguru corrected with a little smirk. "No way I'm letting you fight alone when I spent so much energy in tending you, I'll have to make sure you don't overwork yourself.

\- Yup, No way we leave ya alone." Heiji added with a wide smile. "If that's yer last heist, we all have ta participate !

\- Agreed ! I wouldn't want to miss that." Shinichi finished with a grin at the Thief.

o.O.o

"- Chikage-san, could I have a word ?" Hakuba asked with a low voice after they finished their meeting, when he saw the others weren't really paying attention to them.

"- Sure." The woman agreed, guessing without much difficulty what he was wanting to speak about.

He followed her outside, in the garden, to be sure not to be overheard by the others.

"- I think you should warn _him_..." He started, not feeling the need to speak the man's name.

"- I was planning to, Saguru-kun.

\- And please remind him that, if this stone is really Pandora, he'll have to admit the truth one day sooner than planned to Kaito-kun." The detective added with a dark face.

"- Noted." Chikage confirmed, looking with a sad smile at the blond-haired man's hard expression. "You must really wonder why we keep it from Kaito...

\- Touichi-san gave me your reasons..." Hakuba stated with a disapproving face. "But I cannot understand why you decided to have him suffer that long. You even left him alone to live with your husband in Vegas, that's just...

\- As Touichi told you, we weren't inactive. He was fighting the Organization and they were too aggressive for him to fight them alone, he tried but quickly learned it the hard way...

\- But your son was also alone ! " The blond-haired pointed out, his usual calm fading a bit to let his anger appear.

"- I made sure he was in control. Asked Jii-san to support him." The woman argued. "A magician can't act alone and no one but me could help Touichi, as everyone else thought he was dead. I didn't want either my husband or my son to die and that's the only way I found. Don't think I didn't feel his pain, don't think I didn't understand how hard it was for him to take that white suit out of revenge..." She added, her eyes shining a bit. "But in two days, we'll be a family again. We may have to hide, may have to move elsewhere, but, once the comet will have disappeared, the Organization will have no goal anymore. It may even collapse from it. And those men who dared to threaten my family will have lost. This is being unfair for Kaito but if that was the price to keep my husband and son alive, I'll gladly do it again."

Saguru looked at the woman, meeting her determined eyes. It had been easy to blame Chikage or Touichi to have hidden the truth to Kaito but in fact... The real culprit there was the Organization. They had forced half the Kuroba family into hiding, throwing a kid in a fight he didn't belong to in the process. But, just like the magician's mother mentioned, was there really any other solution ? As unfair as it was, wasn't it the only way, as she said, to keep them all alive ? It was perhaps hard to admit but that decision they took, 12 years ago, had almost been able to bring them until that night, that very night after which everything should be over.

"- I won't say I don't understand. I just hope Kaito-kun won't hate both of you too much for that." The blond-haired concluded before going back inside with a sad look.

o.O.o

"- Hey, Shinichi..." Heiji asked, turning to his best friend with a serious look.

Both of them were covering the ground of the museum the following night, hidden in the crowd. They were supposed to try to spot Snake or any Organization member they could see, and follow them if they could. Their respective girlfriends were parked in their cars a bit further, out of the security zone the police had created, ready to move as fast as possible if the guys couldn't follow them by foot, in case they took a vehicle. The Osakan would have preferred to use a motorbike, since it was easier to follow someone with it in the traffic, but his shoulder was still painful so, even if he could find one, he wouldn't have been efficient...

As to Hakuba, Aoko and Kaito, they were in the building. The blond-haired was with Nakamori-keibu's team, the girl was hidden under a disguise among the museum's staff in the room where the jewel was exposed to support for Kaito in his tricks.

"-Yes ?" The Tokyoite answered, looking at the dark-skinned.

"- Try not ta die tonight...

\- Oh, what did I do to deserve such sentimentalism ?" Shinichi joked with a smirk.

"- I need ya as my best man." Heiji announced with a wide proud grin.

"- What ?! You finally dared to...

\- Nah, in fact, it's Kazuha who dared...

\- Haha, this suits your couple so much..." The azure-eyed snorted before giving a serious look to his friend. "So I guess that for once you chose the right answer ?

\- Yup..." Hattori admitted, blushing a bit as he remembered how it happened.

"- I'm proud of you !" Kudô said, slapping gently the Osakan's shoulder, careful not to use to much force and to avoid his wound. "I'm in, of course, old pal ! But then don't die either, we need the groom for a wedding… And also, even if I wait for Ran to finish her studies to propose her, I'll also need someone as my best man.

\- Shin..." The green-eyed detective started, emotion on his face, almost ready to hug the other.

"- Well I can't guarantee I'll choose you but you're on the finish list… " Shinichi taunted him with a wide smile.

"- Hey !" Heiji pouted with an expression of disappointment.

"- Joking, of course, I want you to be my best man, you Baka." The Tokyoite confirmed with a little nudge that brought back a wide smile on the other's face.

 _"- It's shooooow time !"_

"- Time ta be serious again..." The Osakan pointed out, darkening. " I'll be coverin' the back o' the buildin', take care o' the front.

\- Roger. Good luck !"

o.O.o

Hakuba was panting as he reached the roof, not really used to that kind of exercise, but willing to meet as fast as possible the Kid, knowing he would arrive there soon now that the stone was in his possession.

The said-thief was indeed just landing and had a wide smile when he saw his best friend was already here.

"- We got it, Saguru, I bet it is !" He rejoiced with a happy face.

"- Kaito-kun, could I be the one who looks at it ?" The blond-haired asked, not wanting the magician to be the one to identify what could be Pandora, just in case the prophecy could be true.

"- Uh, yea, why not, if you want to..." His friend answered, a bit troubled, but nevertheless accepting, throwing the necklace to him.

The detective caught the jewel and raised it to the moonlight, to see that, indeed, the dark centre wasn't just a dull capsule of liquid but a shiny stone, gently glowing under the white light. That was a doublet for sure.

"- It is Pandora... At least, it matches its description. " He articulated to answer to Kaito's silent question.

At his conclusion, the boy got his wide smile back on his face.

"- Let's get rid of that, so that damn Organization will never achieve his goal..."

"- I'm afraid I'll have to prevent you from doing that."

Both friends turned their heads to see Snake was at the other side of the roof, coming out of nowhere, a gun in his hand. Without any warning, the man pushed the trigger and shot towards Hakuba, who was saved only by the quick reflexes of the Thief who sent them both on the floor with a pained grimace as his hurt side hit the ground. The necklace flew out of the blond-haired man's hand with the shock, and stopped not far away from the moustached man.

Kaito quickly got up with a grunt, eyes shining with pain as his body wasn't really willing to obey him, but that was only to see the man had already fetched the jewel, holding it in the hand with a satisfied smile on his face.

"- What the... Let go of that jewel and drop your weapon !" Nakamori-keibu yelled as he opened the roof's door, to see what looked like a criminal menacing both Hakuba and the Kid and that he had the stone in his hand.

"- What if I say no ?" The man smirked, aiming at the policeman.

"- Inspector, get down !" Kaito warned, throwing himself between Snake and Nakamori when he saw the man in black was going to shoot and the policeman wouldn't be able to take his weapon out fast enough to protect himself.

Another gunshot echoed in the night, leaving the inspector with wide eyes as the white cape that had flown in front of him was going down, now tainted with scarlet.

"- Kaito-kun !" Hakuba yelled, unable to stay quiet as he saw the magician fell on the floor, clenching his right hand against his chest, just like he had done in Akako's vision.

As the blond-haired rushed to him and opened his jacket, his trained eyes started to be clouded by tears as he understood what he was seeing. The wound was too close to the heart, the bleeding too severe. His friend would be dead within minutes, and the whole world's medical skills wouldn't be enough to avoid that.

"- Looks like… I messed up." Kaito faintly concluded, forcing a smile on his face, before tensing with a pained grimace and closing his eyes, his body resting in a pool of blood wider and wider.

"- KAITO ! "

* * *

 **Aaaaaand... Cliff ! *runs away like a mad***

 **Sorry, was too tempting xD**

 ***comes back and avoids projectiles* Hey, don't kill the author if you want to have the end of that story ! : p**


	17. Chapter 17 - Hope

**Heya !**

 **Time for some hunt, ne ? : p**

 **o.O.o**

 **anilover : *runs to avoid both glares and things* naaah, don't kill me ! xD Sooo, yes, it is Pandora. At the moment, Snake has it, so yes, we can consider the MKO got it. Scary, eh ? :p**

 **Laury Rose : Hmm that could have been an idea... let's say they were in a hurry as they had less than 24 hours to prepare the whole thing ? That bulletproof jackets are harder to move in ? that Kaito has a bunch of tricks to protect him ? :p As to Nakamori, of course, he had to appear here for the plot and yes, no way he doesn't understand Kaito's hidden ID with that... Ah, good question, about our witch, answer in that chapter ! ; ) Hey, I think I put a bunch of warning for you all not to bury Kaito so fast :p The hell I'd kill him... ! As to the jewel, well, Kaito and his father couldn't find it in years, so I imagined a way for it to be hidden for everyone. As to the 'convenient' typhoon, since Pandora bears a supernatural part, I imagined the stone would find a way to be found before the comet passes. A kind of "Lord of the Rings" ' ring power. It's not a conscient thing but it can make stuff happen. Yup, as I said, darker ^^;**

 **Hebiaczek : Yea, he's clearly the voice of the reason xD Since I answered the others (sorry again for typos mistakes, tried to correct it a bit, can't guarantee at all I didn't leave some but... That's my best at the moment^^;), I'll go straight to your last questions. Why the Organization waited ? Even if they had the info at the same time than the boys and were as hype as they were about it, clearly, the timelapse was too short for them to look for the place the jewel was be hidden, since the MKO I desccribed isn't really large. As the the crowd and hostage / slaughter possibilities related to it, it's perhaps not precise enough ? I explained the police established a secured zone around the museum so no civilian is in the museum, just some staff (with a hidden Aoko) and the policemen. Kid's heists almost always implied large crowd so there's one, I can't see how the boys could have avoided it, but it's a bit further away, with Heiji and Shinichi. As to the bulletproof vest, I can see your point. They'd be counless arguments in favour of it or against it. I just decided he wouldn't wearing one because that wasn't where I was going plot-wise (now that I think about it, I could have been using perforing bullets but well, what is written is written, at least to me :p) .  
**

 **emmahoshi : Nah, that's fun to have your reactions on the spot, don't worry : ) Sooo, that intro is because I _killed_ my plot-beta reader (or was it the other way around ?:p) with this chapter and the upcoming ones as I didn't warn her. I wanted to avoid it to you all : ) Haha, yea, I like to have an explanation for everything and finding Pandora would be an important moment of MK, I had to do better than : "During a heist, Kaito looked at the stone and... Oh, Pandora ! I'm so lucky today..." xD Ah, that's how I also see it, they're best pals afterall : ) Hmm, yea, was also hesitating for Hakuba or Aoko buuut... Ah, that's a spoiler... Go to the end of the chapter for the rest ! And thanks, I'm glad you're a reasonable reader :p**

 **Lady Paper : Hey, one taking it easy, great ; ) Here is the continuation ! : )**

 **Great : Hey, not that far : ) You'll see ; )**

 **JarayZ : Hmm as to me , it's more about the quantity. While I prefer canon couples, if the story is good, I can enjoy a KaiShin or a CoAi fic. But sometimes, too much is just too much... Luckily, since I'm not into romance and like complicated stories, I usually read fics with canon couples : ) Haha, as to me, I'm no kid anymore but I'm jumping everywhere... (haha, ok, not nowadays but usually^^; ) Life's unfair :p I think you are one of the only ones... I mean, I wrote that intro for the readers to be like you, more excited about the why /how than the fact Kaito is severly wounded but it looks like it didn't work well :p Oh, nice to know you wouldn't throw things at me, that's a relief xD**

* * *

 **Chapter 17 - Hope**

* * *

"- KAITO ! " Hakuba yelled, putting by reflex his hands on the wound to compress it despite the fact it was useless, barely seeing what he was doing, crying with sadness, rage, guilt, unable to get over the fact Akako had seen it coming, had warned him and he still hadn't been able to prevent it.

He felt Nakamori behind his back, the man finally daring to approach, not even thinking about stopping Snake who was running away, his face blank as he kneeled near the Thief's head.

The officer had heard how Saguru had called the Kaitou Kid, was seeing his desperate face, implying the man on the floor was clearly someone he knew well. Despite all those indirect proves, he nevertheless stretched his hand to the Thief's hat, removing it slowly, then the monocle, to see the unmistakable face of his son in law. It was the second time it happened lately, and he, at last, accepted the fact it could only mean one thing.

The blond-haired didn't even stop him... What was the use to hide the fact Kaito was the Kid when he was taking his last breaths with difficulty ?

"- Where were you?!" Saguru snapped as he heard someone landing near him, knowing who he was without having to look, frustrated since the man was late... so damn late.

Touichi stayed silent as he walked to his son, unable to miss the scarlet recovering his clothes, nevertheless keeping his beloved Poker face, though it had never been that hard to him to do so. If only he hadn't met this agent of the Organization downstairs, he could have arrived so sooner, perhaps could even have avoided this. The magician in black put a knee on the floor to take his son's hand, feeling he reacted to his touch.

"- Hey, Kaito...

\- Tou-san ... ?" Kaito did the effort to open his eyes as he recognized the voice, wondering if he was hallucinating, being so close to cross the frontier between the living and the dead.

"- Yes..." The man said, taking his hat and his monocle away with his free hand. "Sorry I had you wait for me for so long.

\- I knew it was you... Corbeau..." The indigo eyed faintly smiled.

Nakamori was looking at the pair with even more startle, understanding the old friend he'd been mourning for years was in fact very alive and in the skin of a thief. He was thinking that night was starting to be a bit hard for him when...

"- Saguru !" Aoko yelled, panting from her long run from the room where the jewel was exhibited.

She ran to them, the mask she had just removed in her hand, and froze when she saw Kaito. She did her best to compose herself quickly, gulping to try to get the tears out of her eyes, a bit too fast, as if she was expecting the terrible scene in front of her eyes.

"- Akako called me, she... She knows how to save Kaito !"

Hakuba turned with a startled face to the girl, not knowing how to react, unable to believe such...

"- She ... sort of knew that was going to happen, she's in the hotel in front of us, at the last floor, chamber 2452. She needs us to bring Kaito as soon as possible. You can access to it by the roof..." Aoko explained, clenching the mask in her hand to stop herself from panicking to see her husband like this.

"- Touichi-san, could you bring him to her ? She... may be able to help him. Better than me at least..." The half-brit admitted with a bitter grimace.

The man nodded, trusting his son's best friend's judgment, and bent to delicately grab Kaito who had fainted again, not really far away of his end now.

"- Ginzô... Help them." He asked, a nostalgic smile on his face, with one last look at the one who had been his best friend for so long.

He then deployed his glider and detective, father and girl looked at the black shape taking the white in his arms, crossing the skies in the hope to save the Phantom Thief.

Aoko looked at the couple going away with worry and rubbed her eyes to face Saguru again.

"- I'm going there." She announced with a determined voice. "She asks you to bring the stone to her."

Looking around him, Hakuba of course noticed the absence of Snake... And of the jewel.

"- The Organization has it... " He hissed with a low voice, trying to control his rage.

"- Then I hope the others have been able to follow one of them... Keep me informed, good luck." She wished as she turned on herself.

"- Yes, good luck.

\- Aoko... Did you know ?" Her father asked with a shaking voice, still trying to organize his thoughts, unable yet to see the world with fresh eyes with all the revelations he got that night.

The woman looked at him and nodded. "I learned it a while ago, by accident... Just before we became a couple. I thought the truth would hurt you too much so I kept it quiet, despite the fact it was hard not to tell you... Kaito... The Kaitou Kid isn't an enemy, dad." She firmly assured, locking determinate eyes with his. "Sorry, we'll speak of it later if you want but just now, I want to be with my husband."

Father and girl nodded at each other and she left the roof, heading to the hotel at the other side of the street.

Nakamori bowed his head, as if the weight of everything he learned fell on his shoulders. Kaito was the Kid. And Aoko knew it. And there had been two of them, his best friend Touichi very probably having been the first. And that friend he had thought lost forever had been here in front of him, holding his dying son in his arms.

The inspector shook his head and looked at Hakuba who had gotten up and wiped his bloody hands against his trousers to take his phone out.

"- Shinichi-kun ?" He called, as he heard the other detective pant in his phone. "How is it by your side ?

\- I'm tailing Snake with Heiji and the girls...

\- Do not let him escape, that's important." The blond-haired insisted, though he preferred to stay evasive.

"- You ok ? What about the stone ?

\- I am ok. I'll explain later, call me when you have more information."

Hakuba hung up, avoiding the Tokyoite's question, not wanting to disturb him in his chase. He finally looked at the inspector who was staring at him. The shock on his face was starting to disappear, and the policeman was coming back, with loads of questions. Why. Who. What.

"- Sorry we had to keep it from you but we didn't know if you'd understand. To explain it roughly, Touichi-san has been forced to fake his death, as his hidden identity had been found out by an extremely dangerous Organization who wanted to get rid of him. Kaito..." Saguru gulped as a bloody picture of his friend crossed his mind. "... discovered the existence of that criminal group five years ago, and has been hunting them since, believing they killed his father. The heists were just the only way he had found to uncover them and to stop their plans.

\- ... I think I may have some questions to ask you all after but for now... How can I help you ? Do we really have a chance to save Kaito-kun ?"

The blond-haired detective crossed the man's eyes, seeing how his look was filled with hope. Criminal or not, the magician was almost like his son and proved it once again, taking that bullet for him. The inspector just didn't want to lose him, whatever the cost.

"- Shinichi-kun and Heiji-kun are chasing a member of that Organization just as we speak. We may find what we need to save him in their headquarters. I'm going to meet them, you may be able to help us, above all if we need to perform a huge interpellation.

\- If that's manpower you need, count on me.

\- It would be helpful. But we need to stay discreet at the beginning, else we take the risk them to flee with what we need... A smaller group is indicated. If you think you can abide to our plan, come with me. And If you could provide us some material, it would also be perfect."

Nakamori nodded with a serious look at the half-brit. "I'll see what I can get without drawing too much attention.

\- Let's go then." Hakuba said, with one last look at the spot Kaito was lying just a few minutes before.

 _"We'll save you, Kaito-kun..."_

o.O.o

The witch's long black hairs were flying in the wind as she opened the safety issue's door to welcome the Thieves. The girl was dressed in her witch outfit, not even chilling despite the cold air. She had prepared herself to the worst the last two days, fearing what was probably going to come. And there they were. The woman knew it wasn't going to be easy but she needed to.

"- Over here." She called Corbeau, not needing to use a strong voice, knowing he would hear her nevertheless, thanks to her powers on the men.

Tilting his glider, the black Thief landed on the roof with caution and had a little bow at the girl.

"- Follow me." Akako ordered, turning back without a real look at them.

She knew she wouldn't be able to. Her dear... friend was badly hurt, on the verge of dying... this wasn't the time for her to be sad, to even risk to shed one tear for him : she was the only one to be able to help him right now and that one tear would have left her powerless and unable to save him.

"- Don't we risk to meet someone ?" Touichi wondered as she walked in the last floor, not even thinking about hiding.

"- I had the whole floor booked tonight, we won't be disturbed." She flatly answered.

The witch led them to a room she had prepared, with candles a bit everywhere, bathing the room in a flickering light. The furniture had been pushed in a corner and a large circle with a pentacle inside had been drawn with some paint on the carpet.

Keeping his Poker face, Kaito's father, as he looked at the room, was however wondering in what kind of madness he was meddling in. Though, when medicine couldn't help anymore, the solution was due to be out of the ordinary.

"- Have him lay in the middle of the circle." Akako said as she herself settled on the drawing, a bit on the side, facing the door.

Touichi did as said, letting go of his son with difficulty, feeling he was so close to let his last breath out he was reluctant to leave him alone for that moment.

Once the magician lied on the floor, the long-haired woman closed her eyes and a kind of reddish light suddenly surrounded her and Kaito. Her magic usually implied a scarlet aggressive light, reminding some kind of fierce blaze, a raging fire, but, that time, its light was warm, almost gentle.

"- I'm going to stop his time. But I won't be able to do it forever, it will already be difficult to hold on until the next moon comes with the comet tomorrow. " She explained slowly, feeling the pressure of the magic she was using, of her powers draining her body. "I suppose you're familiar with Pandora's prophecy ?

\- When the Volley comet comes close to the Earth, take the holy gem under the moon's shadow and a tear will come out. That tear will make the ultimate dream of all mankind comes true." The Thief recited, having heard the legend more than once in his jewels' hunt. "Immortality, apparently.

\- Perhaps... At least the power to cure the most desperate conditions, that I can assure you. Bring me the stone tomorrow night. That's all that can save him now.

\- I will." Touichi fervently promised, before a last bow at the witch.

She felt him leave and totally focused her attention on slowing down her breathing, she needed it to have more energy to give to her spell.

The red magic wasn't just about curses, jinks and manipulation. If the feelings of the caster were strong enough, that magic could be almost as efficient as white magic healing-wise. Akako had a sad ironic smile, knowing that use was usually reserved for the relatives belonging to red magic families but... He was the man her heart had chosen: despite the fact she knew he'd never be hers, she couldn't help herself to want to do her best to keep him alive. If her feelings were giving more strength to her powers, then, required or not, it was for the best.

o.O.o

The two detectives had used both cars and had alternated not to risk to draw Snake's attention. They had been trailing him since Heiji spotted him in the crowd near the museum, in hope he would lead them to his Boss, or perhaps even to the headquarters.

"- He's heading at the marina..." Shinichi stated in his DB badge from the passenger seat of the car Ran was driving.

"- The marina ?" The Osakan wondered on the other side of the line. "Does he plan ta rent a boat or what ?

\- Don't know... But you'd better to come closer, I don't want to lose sight of him and this could happen pretty fast in such a place..."

The green-eyed detective turned to Kazuha who, having heard the Tokyoite, accelerated to finally see, after a few minutes, the vehicle of their friends, parked near the deck and with opened car doors.

Seeing no one was around, they quickly stopped and went to look for their friends. They exchanged a look as they heard a splashing noise and rushed to the deck, to see the azure-eyed detective was in the water, and Ran hidden behind a metal container just near him.

They quickly meet her, with interrogative looks.

"- Snake is in that boat..." She whispered, showing a large white boat slowly leaving the deck.

"- But it's leavin' ! " Kazuha pointed out with a panicked face.

"-Shinichi is on it...

\- He's crazy, he won' be able ta swim ta follow a boat ..." The dark-skinned detective said with disbelieving eyes.

"- I don't think he'll try to follow it. But seeing how slow it is to leave the port, reaching it will be child's play..." Ran smiled.

And indeed, the azure-eyed man hadn't try to follow the boat, he was now coming back at them. As he approached, Ran got out of her hideout and helped him out of the water, trying to preserve his wounded elbow.

"- I can' believe we're going to lose him !" The Osakan swore with a pissed off face as he also got out of his hiding, angry to see the ship go away.

"- It's ok, Heiji..." Shinichi grinned, putting a soothing - and wet - hand on his arm. "I put an emitter on the ship's hull, we just have to hope it won't go too far off the coast."

The dark-skinned looked at him with a wide smile. "Ya an' yer gadgets..." He said, though there was no irony in his voice.

"- Let's fetch the others, we got a ship to catch !" The drenched Tokyoite concluded, mirroring his best friend's smile.

* * *

 **emmahoshi : Sooo, I settled on Kaito because this wouldn't have worked without Akako's help & premonitions and, while she'd go to any length for Kaito, I don't think she would for Aoko or Hakuba. They're are other reasons (I won't give them here as they'd be spoilers) but this is still one of the main reasons.**


	18. Chapter 18 - Staying alive

**Heya !**

 **Time for the guys to fight directly with the MKO, right ? : )**

 **o.O.o**

 **emmahoshi : Well, he had to learn that one day, and that's the way I decided :p Hey, that intro in chap 16 was my "the hell I'll kill Kaito!" to my readers, I can't believe you'd think even one second I'd kill him :p Oh, well, since Kaito and Aoko have known each other for so long, Touichi and Ginzo very probably interacted with each other. In the 2014 anime, Kaito and Aoko are even neighbours... So I imagined an old friendship between their fathers. I thought it was canon but now that I re-read it... it was just me in fact ! haha, yea, Kudô at your service to destroy criminal organisations ! ; ) Hmmm *reads quickly* ^^;;; sorry this chapter is filled with cliffs and action soooo maybe not to look forward for you ? don't know what's your style ^^**

 **Great : Oh, I got that idea from that scene when she tries to force Kaito to eat her chocolate in the middle of the street. No one disturbs them, it seemed really strange... I've always thought she had used a time stopping magic, so I used the concept.**

 **anliover : of course :p And answers to all your questions next... few chapters xD**

 **Laury Rose : Haha, you didn't believe me when I said I'd never kill him, admit it xD Maaa... Answer to those interrogations the next chapterS... :p Hmm I'd say Nakamori is more like "I don't get at all what's happening but, since they say it's important, let's work on that and think after". He'll have time later to think about what happened : ) Yea, let's kick some butts ! :p**

 **JarayZ : Hehe, well still, nice to see some read the warnings xD Well, I already killed some chars (like Camel, sorry again dude... ) but clearly not one of the mains, yea ^^; Yeaah ! I told you I did want Akako to be useful in this fic : ) Ah, just as I said to Great, I thought about the moment everything seem frozen when she tries to have him to eat that choco... i saw it as time stopping magic : ) Hmm let's see if we can find any use in Nakamori-keibu~. Oh, take care then, being sick, may it just be a cold or somethig bigger, is never fun... ^^;;;**

* * *

 **Chapter 18 - Staying alive**

* * *

It was with disbelieving eyes the two detectives and their girls saw a police van approach them in the marina, with Hakuba on board, waving at them.

"- Come in ! " He rushed them, opening the side door and inviting him with a gesture of the arm.

"- What's the... " Heiji wondered when he saw Nakamori-keibu being the wheel.

"- Get in, I'll explain. Do you know where they are heading ?" The blond-haired asked as they all got in and the policeman started the motor again.

"- I was waiting for you before switching them on to spare the battery..." Shinichi said, getting his Conan's glasses out.

"- Where to then ?" Nakamori said, giving a quick look at the Tokyoite.

"- Try to stay as close of the sea as you can. They seem to stay near of the coast and are going towards the east. " He advised, looking at the little red dot on the glass while their driver started to head to that direction. "So drive that way, I'll tell you if anything changes.

\- Where are Kaito and Aoko ?" Ran observed, seeing as she looked in the van they weren't aboard. Her eyes fell on a bunch of bloody clothes and bandages in a corner of the vehicle, the ones Hakuba had removed to replace them with what he could find on board : some dark clothes and some band aid from the first aid kit. "Have you been hurt ?!

\- No, the blood isn't mine... " He denied with a low voice as he saw where she was looking at.

The four friends detailed at the blond-haired, noticing he seemed tired and his eyes were puffy.

"- Somethin' happened ta Kaito..." The Osakan guessed at his long face.

"- Yes. He's been badly hurt, Aoko-kun and Akako-kun are with him.

\- He's at the hospital then ?" Kazuha concluded, though she wondered what Koizumi-san was doing with both of them, as she lived so far of the capital.

"- No, they wouldn't have been able to do anything for him...

\- What ?!" The azure-eyed spurted, starting at the half-brit, suddenly overwhelmed with worry, just like his friends.

"- Listen, I'm not really at ease with that but Kaito-kun is... Kaito-kun has been shot, he's dying."

Both girls put their hands in front of their mouths to hide their horror, while the boys stayed silent, with a dark faces.

"- I don't know how, this is perhaps just a fairy tale but the stone... the stone could help him.

\- Saguru, you're a doctor, you should be the first to know jewels don't heal people..." Shinichi pointed out with a low voice, feeling he had to force his friend to see the truth instead of trusting some kind of crazy hope. "This is just a legend they believed in during WWII...

\- I've seen... strange things lately." Hakuba admitted, turning his look away to hide his embarrassment. "If there's even the tiniest chance... I want to take it. Better that than just giving up. Whatever happens, we were supposed to try to find their headquarters, so getting the stone back was already a kind of side mission. I'm just telling you it should be our first priority."

The five of them stayed silent, taken aback by the news. Kaito was in such a critical condition only an old legend could save him ? Even the superstitious Kazuha and Heiji had it hard to put their hopes in a stone. But the other possibility was just...

Raising his head again, Shinichi looked at Saguru, thinking about the man who was with them. "He knows ? " He asked with a low voice, with a gesture of the chin at their driver.

"- Yes... He learnt it the hard way... And accepted to help us." The blond-haired said with a stronger voice, as there was nothing to hide anymore.

"- That's why we got that van then..." Heiji concluded, looking around him, spotting the equipment with an admiring face. "An' all the stuff within it.

\- I kind of borrowed it but... Try not to mess too much with it, it's not really official..." The policeman admitted, a bit embarrassed.

His men trusted him enough to let him take the vehicle alone without reporting him but that was still a bit risky for his career...

"- We want to stay discreet for the moment..." Hakuba confirmed to ease the man's fears. "But we'll need some reinforcement after we found the stone. Once we'll know where we're headed, you should have you men come and stay on stand-by.

\- Hmm I'll need a warrant to get in there...

\- They'll probably shoot on sight, even before we even step on their property, you'll be able to intervene for firearms possession and murder attempt on a policeman..."The azure-eyed detective pointed out.

"- And we'll probably find some elements against them in there..." The Osakan added with hope.

o.O.o

"- I'll park here, I don't want to come too close." The inspector explained as he stopped the van and switched off his lights not to be too obvious.

The five young adults had been equipping themselves with bullet-proof jackets and had put dark clothes above theirs for more discretion. Shinichi had to completely change, since he didn't want to catch a cold after his little bath in the ocean.

Nakamori left his seat and also grabbed a jacket before looking at the "team" in front of him.

"- Ok... I can't have you all go in there without anything to defend yourselves but... Any of you got experience with guns ?"

The three guys raised their hands : Hakuba and Kudô had been learning long ago, as teenagers, and Hattori had been learning with them as an adult, just in case, as it seemed important with his line of work.

"- Ok, I'll give you three a weapon then, just try not to hurt yourselves, it will be hard enough to justify it without that..."

After picking up some guns in the metallic trunk where the weapons were stored to give them to the boys, he looked at the two girls with embarrassment. "If I understood correctly, you two are gifted with martial arts ?" At their nods, he bent again in the box to fetch some stun guns. "This should help you with close contact combat. But you'll have to stick with us as you'll be unable to do anything against long-ranged weapons, is that clear ? And I want every of you with a helmet glued on the head. During the whole operation."

They all nodded, glad to have someone experimented with them to sneak into what was very probably the Organization's headquarters.

The place was a huge villa, perched at the top of a cliff that was something like 25 meters high, just above the sea. The complex was 3 storey-high but there seemed to be some kind of stairs against or in the stone wall, perhaps even an hidden structure, as there was a small dock for the boat to berth, and there had to be a way to go up to the house.

The ship at least explained why Touichi had had some difficulties to find their hideout : as long as there was water, they'd just drive to the sea or any large river and hide their cars into the boat. And they would never flee in the same direction, as the ship was mobile, and the villa quite out of the capital.

While Nakamori had been calling his team and the others were looking at the place to find a way to enter, Hakuba had been discreetly texting Chikage so she could warn Touichi. The man would be a precious asset in such a mission so he hoped he'd be able to join them.

 _"Or at least be able to give me some news of Kaito-kun..."_ The blond-haired fervently hoped, still not sure about Akako's plan.

"- I think we should try to infiltrate that place through the beach..." Shinichi concluded after he observed the site. "It'll be a bit harder to get in but entering though the villa would mean almost knocking on the front door and that's incompatible with discretion...

\- An' we wouldn' want them ta flee with that boat...

\- Indeed. Though it would be a good idea to have your men enter later through the villa, Nakamori-keibu." Hakuba concluded, agreeing to his friends observations.

"- Ok. Let's go then."

o.O.o

Ten minutes later, after they waited for the agents on the ship to enter the headquarters, the group was walking along the wall, staying the closest possible not to be spotted. There were one or two guards on the ship but the door was half hidden by the rocks, allowing them not to be seen.

Shinichi, having zoomed with his glasses at the men who entered, was the first to the door and dialled the code he saw to open it, before hiding back against the wall.

"- Uh, didn't everybody go in ?" The guard wondered, passing the head through the door to look outside.

He was welcomed by a harsh kick from Ran, just on the top of his neck, and fell on the ground with a dull noise. Heiji quickly dragged him behind a rock and used plastic bonds to tie his wrists and his legs. He nodded at the others and they went in, closing the door behind them and blinking at the strong light.

They ended in a small room, at the bottom of a huge staircase, carved into the rock, and they decided, after exchanging a look with each other, to climb it and to take their weapons out in case.

During their ascension, they saw a few doors but preferred not to open them and passed in silence, guessing the high-ranked of the Organization were very probably in the villa and, with them, the jewel, so no use to fight the underlings who could be hidden down here.

That method had been a good idea until a door opened as the group passed and all exchanged a startled look with the one in front of them, freezing in surprise.

"- Intruders !" The man had the time to yell before being knocked out by Kazuha who was the closest and that had jumped to him.

"- Go up !" Nakamori ordered, staying a bit behind to shoot at the other men who, woken up by the sentinel's cry, were rushing to the door to get rid of them.

A loud alarm soon echoed in the complex, forcing an annoyed grimace on Hakuba's face. " I guess the infiltration is over... We need to rush upstairs and try to find the stone !"

Eager to reach the top, the group accelerated to cross the last flight of steps and end in what probably was the first floor of the villa.

"- We should head ta the last floor, I saw they had a heliport, they'll prob'bly escape that way !" Heiji advised as he kicked open the door separating the underground from the real mansion.

"- The elevator is here ! "Ran pointed out, showing her left with the arm.

They all jumped inside, waiting for Nakamori who soon followed, still exchanging a few bullets with some of his pursuers.

Hakuba rushed out as they hit the last floor, his gun in his hand, finding himself in the middle of a large meeting room with, at the other side, three men escaping through a stair probably leading to the roof and two others getting their guns out when they saw him.

"- Wolf, Scorpio, get rid of them !" A plumb and old man ordered with a look behind him.

"- Yes Boss !" Both answered on the same tone.

"- Cover me !" The blond haired yelled as he threw himself after the Boss.

"- That damn Ahou !" Heiji swore as he saw his friend running towards the other side of the room. "Shinichi, take the girl on the left, I'll take the guy, ya girls stay here, it's too dangerous !"

Nakamori, seeing the two detectives were heading towards their respective targets, decided to follow the half-brit, knowing he'd clearly need his help as three men had been taking the stairs.

The two agents, knowing the two bodyguards of the Boss would be able to get rid of a kid and an old man, grinned at each other and aimed at their respective attacker with an evil smile.

Heiji and Shinichi, seeing the agents were splitting and each going after one of them, ran in a different direction, to have them as far as possible from their Boss and the girls.

The Tokyoite ran in zig-zag, avoiding the bullets aimed at him, not really wanting to be hit despite his protections. He rushed downstairs and, noticing a dark corner behind some shelves, hid there, weapon in the hand, ready to surprise the woman.

And indeed, the agent named "Scorpio" had a startled face when the azure-eyed detective jumped in front of her and shoot a bullet in her torso, just near her right shoulder. She fell on the floor on the back and Shinichi approached her, checking her to be sure she fainted.

The Tokyoite was kneeling to attach her wrists when the woman suddenly opened her eyes and grabbed his hand with strength.

"- What the..." Kudô said after a little groan when he felt some kind of sting on his forearm.

Starting to be dizzy, he groaned once more as his legs refused to work anymore, too weak to bear his weight, sending him to the floor.

The agent got up with a grimace, holding her wounded arm, and looked at the detective at his feet.

"- If my codename is Scorpio, it wasn't just because it was classy, boy..." She mocked with an amused face. "Pity for you you've never heard of it... But don't worry, I'll stay with you for your last moments, I'm a bit of a sentimental..."

Ignoring his feeble state, Shinichi tried to get up, to be stopped by the woman who unceremoniously put her foot on his torso to keep him on the floor. "Stay still, it won't be long..." She grinned with hard eyes.

o.O.o

On his side, Heiji was now on the terrace, facing the man named Wolf. He had, by pure luck, been able to shoot the weapon out of the agent's hand but the man had thrown himself at him with some kind of curved blades, one in each hand, and had been able to deeply hurt his left arm, carving two parallels lines of blood in it.

The Osakan had been able to grab a parasol's tube from the furniture on the terrace and was facing him with his improvised bokken, his useless left arm against him, leaving some scarlet drops behind him.

"- You finally surrender, dark-skinned ?" The man laughed, mocking the panting detective in front of him.

"- You wish..." Heiji retorted with a provocative smile.

Without any warning, the agent ran at him, blades in front of him, and the green-eyed barely parried his hits, getting nevertheless closer and closer of the cliff.

Hattori was looking behind him to check how far the gap was when the man threw his leg at him, sweeping his and pushing him to the void. By pure reflex, Heiji caught the edge of the terrace with his right arm, groaning as his recent scar sent some throbs of pure pain in his back and shoulder, not handling well the sudden solicitation.

Wolf looked at him with a wide smile, kneeling, his arm raised, clearly aiming at the fingers remaining on the ground. "Game over."

o.O.o

Left alone in the room, the girls, after a startled pause, looked at each other with a grin.

"- "Stay here" they said..." Ran began.

"- "It's dangerous" they said..." Kazuha finished.

"- Let's go ?" They concluded together, hating being left behind, above all when they knew they didn't need to prove themselves anymore to their respective men.

With one last nod at each other with an unsaid "good luck" in the eyes, they split, following her boyfriend for one, fiancé for the other.

o.O.o

Nakamori grabbed Hakuba's shirt and pulled him back in when the two bodyguards in black aimed at the stairs' door, having clearly been expecting him, the bullets ending in the wall just where the blond-haired head was a moment ago.

"- Careful..." The inspector said, pushing him a bit behind him to look at the scene. Both agents had stayed behind while their Boss was getting in the helicopter that seemed pretty close to take off. "Ok, at three, you rush at the helicopter. I'll be covering you. You won't have a second chance so you better not stop."

The men exchanged a nod and the policeman showed three fingers he lowered one by one.

"- Go!"

The half-brit rushed in front of him, protecting his eyes with his arm as he came closer to the tail of the helicopter, his weapon in the hand.

Hearing a groan despite the Babel of noise around him, he turned on himself to see the officer had been sent to the floor by a bullet and the last bodyguard standing was approaching him to finish him off.

"- Nakamori-keibu !" Saguru worried, hesitating, turning his head to alternatively look at the helicopter and the man, frozen as he didn't know what to do.

With a frustrated cry, he ran to the inspector, having to come closer to aim at the second man, sending him to the ground with a well-aimed bullet.

Saguru turned to look once again at the helicopter and saw with desperation it was starting to take off.

"- Nooo !" He yelled, powerless, standing too far to hit anything with his weapon as it left the ground, the Boss grinning at them, holding the stone in front of him as a provocation.

* * *

 **Personnal rambling - I guess today's chapter's title is quite fitting...**

* * *

 **11/13 Pray for Paris**

 **Giving up to fear is never the solution. So I don't plan to. Going on is the best way to say 'We won't lose'.**

 **Turning against each other isn't a solution either. So don't confuse things. An idiot is an idiot, no matter his religion or his race.**


	19. Chapter 19 - Dawn

**Hi there !**

 **Uh, I'm pretty late, almost missed the right publishing day, sorry ^^;;;**

 **Sooo after that Guinness record of the "chap with the most cliffs" with the 18th chapter (thanks for that one, emmahoshi, I'm still laughing at it xD), time to solve some of those, right ? ; )**

 **Oh, and we got over the 100 reviews ! As always, thanks guys, for the reviews, the fav', the follows, the views... I never say it enough but those are the author's fuel so thanks for your support ; )**

 **o.O.o**

 **Anilover : Haha, yea, they are having some troubles xD Answer to your questions in that chapter ~ !**

 **Laury Rose : Naaah, don't cry ! ; ) Yea, but what would be the use to have a stone that can make you immortal and just destroy it ? No, it should be used first :p You'll see !~ But yes, as in Alliances, I didn't want the girls to stay away from the fights... they're strong so I'll use that ! : ) Ah, that would be about time for him to appear... right ?^^ Yea, clearly... I don't like quoting but this one from Nietzsche fits so well :** **Fanaticism is the only form of will power to which the weak and irresolute can rise. Those men were weak and, instead of trying to get stronger, they just gave up to fanaticism.** **Random murders aren't about religion, that's just madness.** **There's nothing to be proud of in there.**

 **emmahoshi : yea, there were only male ennemies in that fic, I needed to have a female one ! : ) Yea, Girl power ! ^^ LOL, Guinness worldrecord xD Ok, i'll admit, this fic is, among what i've already written, the one with the most cliffs... I like them so much ! xD Alas, I don't think everyone in the world is safe but those kind of events should just remember to us that, instead of bickering with the others because they're white or black, christian or bouddhist, we should try to understand our differences to get closer and help each other.**

 **JazayZ : Oh, well, gratz, you did it xD Yea, that's quite the skill : ) As to me, I'm always reading one word out of 2... (or less^^;;) But it allows me to read the stories more often, since I forgot most of it, so I enjoy them fully each time : ) Yup, I liked the idea of having some use for Nakamori-keibu^^ I mean, when Kogoro is often described as useless, Ginzô, while he can't keep up with Kaito's plans, is nevertheless often on the mark... Oooh, sorry... *pats* you'll see, you'll read those chapters with a smile after : ) (well, at least not with a tear^^;; )Ah, yes, indeed, it's a bit longer, I didn't notice ^^ I always try to stay between 2500-3500 words so when I see a moment I want to stop (a cliff ? xD), if it respects that length, I stop there : ) Yup, Kaito won't be there... I should let some fun left for him, right ? ; ) Hmm I think it's bit different : APTX was a drug, and it was one of the main works of the BO. Scorpio is just me giving animal names to the MKO agents and finding some weapon fitting those** ** **so it's just about an individual** (Yea, I know Snake doesn't use poison but for example Spider likes the spiderweb illusion). Ah nah, that last sentence was just me stressing the fact that Hakuba was too far away to aim at anything properly and that he couldn't take the risk. Imagine for example he hit the fuel tank by accident, it could kill them all and he'd never be able to retrieve the jewel discreetly...  
**

* * *

 **Chapter 19 - Dawn**

* * *

Ran's heart missed a beat when she finally found Shinichi and saw his opponent, sadistic grin on the face, had her foot on him to force him to stay on the ground. And, despite the fact she noticed the detective was breathing, it clearly didn't relieved her as it should have had since it seemed so hard to him. The Tokyoite was sweating and panting, his eyes half closed, as if he'd been badly hurt but she couldn't spot any wound...

The girl nevertheless didn't hesitate and threw herself at the woman with a cry of rage. Scorpio noticed the long-haired fury just at the last moment but could evade her attack, despite the fact she was hurt and had to keep her other hand against her, to avoid it to move too much.

They exchanged a few hits, not far away from Shinichi, and the agent had a smile after a well-aimed kick she barely avoided.

"- Karate, eh ? Looks like we had the same kind of school, missy..." She deduced at her fighting style, being also herself a karateka.

Opening his eyes at the mention of a 'missy', the Tokyoite had the displeasure to see his girlfriend had engaged a fight with the woman who just poisoned him.

"- Careful, Ran..." He managed to articulate as he saw her not far away on his right side. "She's got poison... in her left hand..."

With widened eyes, Ran finally understood why she couldn't see any injury... Shinichi had been poisoned. Question was how she could help him...

Keeping away her concern from her mind about finding quickly an antidote, the girl attacked the woman with anger, sending a succession on hits until she at last was able to hit her shoulder's wound with her fist, forcing her to quit that smirk she had on the face since she first saw her.

Seeing an opening, she finished her quickly and had a few more punches than necessary to be sure she wouldn't wake up as soon.

Remembering she was facing an emergency, Ran ran back to Kudô without even taking the time to catch her breath, kneeling to take his head in her lap, stroking his sweaty hair out of his face.

"- Shinichi !" She asked with worry, feeling he barely reacted to her touch. "How... how can I help you ?!" The long-haired woman shook, tears starting to form at the corner of her eyes, seeing her beloved serious condition, feeling useless to him.

With an intense effort, the detective managed to look at her and grabbed her hand. "Her pockets... She should have... Antidote..." He whispered, finding it harder and harder to even breathe, and even more talk.

Ran got up with urge and unceremoniously emptied the woman's pockets, before finding out a metallic box, of the size of a wallet, in her vest. With shaking hands, she opened it and saw three little syringes in it, ready for use.

She took one and came back to Shinichi, trying to shake him awake but unable to.

"- Come on, Shinichi..." She prayed, gulping to hold her tears, not sure of what to do and with no time to hesitate.

Noticing she was shaking like mad, she removed her helmet to breathe deeply and took a few seconds to think. He had been poisoned. OK. And was probably dying from it...

 _"Because it's starting to spread to the heart and the lungs !"_ She remembered suddenly, finally finding some use for her experience as a witness of so many crimes with her favourite murder-magnet, in his childish form and after.

The girl put away the syringe she brought and quickly removed Shinichi's top and bulletproof vest, knowing what she had to do now. She removed the syringe's cap, forcing some liquid to get out to be sure no air was remaining and gently put her hand on his bare chest. Taking one deep breath, she stuck the syringe in the heart's area and injected the entire product.

 _"Live, you Baka !"_ She pledged him, taking his hand in hers.

o.O.o

Luckily not to meet anyone, Kazuha had been following a trail of blood she hoped wasn't Heiji's through half the last floor when she noticed the glass door to the terrace was opened.

She couldn't see the Osakan but the remaining agent was there, bending near the cliff, and that was just the perfect moment to get rid of him. The girl discreetly stepped his way, taking her stun gun out, readying it just like Nakamori-keibu showed her before.

That was before she found herself running like a mad when she saw a hand, a dark-skinned hand, barely holding at the edge of the cliff, just under the man's shoe.

"- Leave him alone !" She yelled, charging with her weapon in front of her...

"- Oi..." The guy tried to say, frozen, stepping a bit aside, not wanting to be too close of the cliff when the girl would reach him.

He tried to take the stun gun from her, but couldn't take into account the girl was doing Aikido, meaning that what she was best at was grabbing hands and that's just what he was offering to her.

Kazuha took the man's right arm, the one he had in front of him, and sent him into the air, forcing him to land heavily on his back. She crouched to him and used the stun gun on him, to be sure he was out and then she got up and rushed to the Osakan.

"- Kazuha..." He said as he saw the girl's head bending upon him.

Their eyes met but before she could even grab his hand, a last stabbing pain through his back finally forced him to let go of the terrace, not able to hold on anymore. The long-haired girl threw her arm at him, brushing the back of his hand, not fast enough to catch him.

 _"_ \- Heijiii ! _"_ She yelled as she saw him fall in the dark void below his feet.

o.O.o

A dark shadow suddenly appeared in Hakuba's field of view, bringing along the whistling noise of, he saw it, a grab hook thrown to the helicopter's tail, forcing it back to the roof. Almost at the same time, a playing card hit the boss's hand, sending the jewel to the floor.

The blond-haired had a little smile, the Cavalry was here, and it was very probably pretty angry against those men who hurt so severely his son. Not losing his focus, he ran to fetch the jewel and put it against his heart in his inside pocket with relief, knowing he wouldn't let it go a second time, no matter what happened.

"- Let's get Ginzo out of here ! " Touichi ordered, seeing the helicopter was still trying to take off, and knowing it was soon going to be dangerous if the driver insisted too much.

The detective ran at the inspector, to see that his bullet proof jacket had protected him, he just had knocked his head on the floor and was starting to wake up with a grumpy face. Taking one of his arm to help him on his feet as the magician was doing the same with the other, they each put their shoulder under his arms and hurried to take cover, heading to the roof's door.

"- Stop, you damn idiot !" Was saying the Boss at his driver, seeing the helicopter's blades were starting to smoke, and with a full tank of fuel, it was really not good news...

And indeed, the men just had enough time to go back into the villa and to close the door behind them before the vehicle blew up in a fireball, sending burnt metal debris in every direction around, taking the life of his two occupants with it.

"- Well, they won't annoy us any more, those two..." Nakamori concluded with a straight face. He couldn't rejoice to know someone died but that Boss was responsible of Kaito's current state and he couldn't forgive it. "Let me go, I can walk... Got what you needed, son ?

\- Yes." Saguru confirmed as the man shook him and Touichi off.

"- I'll call my men then, there are still a bunch of bad guys to arrest in that place..." He announced, taking his phone out.

The three of them walked down the roof's stairs after he finished, satisfied to know they had what they were looking for, starting now to pray for it to work, to hope Kaito could be saved, to...

Hakuba felt a strong push of a hand that sent him straight to the floor and, before he could even snap at the culprit, he found himself putting by reflex his both arms above his helmet to protect his head as what looked like hundreds of bullets flew over him.

"- Just when I needed some exercise..." Touichi said with an evil grin, taking out once again the card gun he retrieved from his son, back to that weapon he cherished so much when he started as a Thief.

"- Don't think I'll leave all the fun to you, old pal..." Nakamori objected, taking his own gun out.

"- You and me on the same side when I'm in that outfit? " The magician snorted as he casually shot a few cards towards one of the numerous men facing them, the ones who were hiding in the underground complex. "Was worth coming back to life to see this...

\- If that's too unusual for you, I can cuff you after that, it'll feel more familiar..." The officer grinned, sending a bullet at a man aiming at him.

"- It's amusing, you make it sound as if you DID once... Must be the age, you seem to have a shorter memory now... It never happened and never will." Touichi concluded, his grin even wider as he threw himself in the crowd of criminals.

Impressed, Saguru saw the original Kaitou Kid, dressed in black, in action. He didn't know what he was expecting but it wasn't that. The man was something like 20 years older than Kaito but that didn't slow him down. In fact, it was even harder to follow his moves with the eyes than his son's. The magician was flitting from one target to another, like some kind of dark butterfly, from one flower to another, though it was a deadly one who was knocking down his enemies, using gas on some other, performing tricks so fast on them the eyes couldn't follow his hands. And what also extraordinary, was to see Nakamori, his sworn enemy, having his back, shouting any man menacing Touichi, and the magician was trusting him on that task, not even defending himself, focused on the offensive side.

When Hakuba finally found the strength to get up, it was to see the fight was already over, and the men in the meeting room neutralized.

"- Wicked..." He succinctly concluded, unable to say anything else.

o.O.o

With a pained grimace on the face, Shinichi was finally starting to move again, able to breathe more easily as most of the weight he felt on his lungs and heart had disappeared. He blinked his eyes, to see Ran's were looking at him with concern, red from what had probably been tears, though a smile was now on her lips.

"- I can't believe it worked... It could have been anything in that syringe...

\- She had to have some antidote with her... " The Tokyoite explained with a hoarse voice, raising his hand to wipe one last tear rolling down his girlfriend's cheek. "Else it would have been too risky for her, with her sting in the palm of the hand...

\- You and your deductions..." The girl commented, her hand shaking as she finally accepted the fact he was going to live, after the panic he threw her in when she saw he was almost not breathing anymore. Unable to hold on, she started to sob, trying to rub the water out of his eyes. "You promised not to do it to me again, Baka... After what happened in that last fight against the Black Organization, you promised it wouldn't happen again..."

With a gentle smile, Shinichi sat cautiously and took her in his arms, gently stroking her hair. "I know. I'm sorry I scared you, Ran, I'm sorry."

o.O.o

Heiji met one last time Kazuha's eyes as he felt he letting go, trying to put a reassuring smile on his face when he felt her hand brushed his but wasn't fast enough.

 _"Never mind... No use in havin' two fallin' from that cliff..."_ He thought with a sad smile.

No wanting to die, he nevertheless tried to roll on himself, hoping his helmet would protect his head and his neck, praying not to hit the boat and for the bottom of the creek being deep enough.

 _"Kazuha..."_ He thought just before the shock with the water overwhelmed all his senses with a white flash of pain.

The said Kazuha saw the white circular waves of the place the Osakan just fell, 25 meters below, with a chocked face. She forced herself to move and, without even thinking about her own safety, she quickly got rid of everything that would be heavy in the water : bulletproof jacket, vest, shoes... She kept her helmet, as a protection, and looked at the sea at her feet.

 _"Come on !"_ The girl told herself, slapping her cheeks to brush aside her fear... _"It's even a sport for some ! Though it usually implies some life jacket..."_

Ignoring that last pessimistic personal comment, she jumped gracefully and took one last deep breath before hitting the water. She felt like she was going down meters and meters below the sea level and had to calm herself down, focusing on kicking the water to reach the surface. After what seemed ages to her, Kazuha finally got her head out, sucking almost greedily some air to fill her empty lungs.

Once she felt she had enough, she started to look around, to notice a struggling Heiji something like thirty meters away : he was trying to reach the beach but his clothes, and above all, his bulletproof jacket, were dragging him down, stopping him from getting his head out of the water to breathe.

"- Heiji !" Kazuha called, swimming as fast as she could to him and grabbing his hand to help him up. "Calm down, I'll help you."

Once again in not such a long time span, the girl put her arm under his chin and swam to the sand, where they ended both panting, lying on their stomachs, looking at each other.

"- When will ya take yer baths like everyone else does, Heiji ?" She taunted between two deep breaths.

"- Dunno, if ya come with me each time, I may start ta appreciate it like that..." The Osakan answered with a feeble but smutty smile.

"- Ya Ahou !" She blushed, before taking his hand in hers with a happy smile, and coming closer to share a kiss. "Don't scare me like that again or I'll REALLY have ta cuff ya..."

o.O.o

A bit later, Saguru was out of the villa, lost in his thoughts, looking without seeing it at the rising sun, its light bathing the house and the cliff in a tender pink.

On Nakamori's orders, the policemen had rushed into the headquarters and arrested everyone they could find. There wasn't much a fight, with all the ones the inspector and Touchi had already neutralized.

Hakuba had given the stone to him and the magician had left, going back to the hotel where Kaito and Akako were, while the blond-haired helped his friends. A medical team had been called to take care of their injuries and was finishing the job.

 _"We took them down, Kaito...Snake is still missing but it's just a matter of time..."_ The detective thought, happy to finally release his best friend from his forced mission. _"And tonight, we'll save you."_


	20. Chapter 20 - Life

**Heya !**

 **It's been along time but this is for once a calm chapter xD**

 **Enjoy !**

 **o.O.o**

 **Anilover : haha, you'll see ~ And yes, since Kaito is always so admirative of his father, I wanted to picture him as someone out of the ordinary, with pretty cool skills, even higher than Kaito's : ) Haha, nah, the Comet passes... this very chapter ; ) Chapter 19 was the night before.**

 **emmahoshi : don't worry, I took it as a joke : ) I'm the same than you when I read fics : cliffs make it so exciting ! But I so hate when the next chapter is published ages after or sometimes even, never... I promise I'll never do that ! *chills* Yea, Ran is great, that needed to be reminded :p Haha, well, apart from the first one, Heiji got only scratches so I'd say Kaito got it the worst in this fic ^^;;; That couple is so tsundere, I really like to picture them and their clumsiness : ) And yes, we'll be finally ending that cliff I wrote about Kaito in this chapter ! When I remember I thought it would be solved in 1-2 chapters and it took 4... ^^;;; Hmm was ok, my brain added the missing 's' by itself so it was understable : )**

 **Lady Paper : Oh no, you saw right through me ! *hides her horns and tail with embarrassment* Haha, well, I must admit there was quite a bit of suspense in those last chapters ; ) Thank you for holding on^^**

 **Laury Rose : Let's say the Organization is down and some members may be left here and there :p Thanks : ) Maah, I think it's been quite soft in this fic, Heiji's amulet must have been pretty efficient this time since he got only scratches :p Kaito got it the worst ^^; Yea, those girls' strength is clearly needed for these murders / dangers - magnets, clearly ! Haha, yea, I really like the idea of them fighting back to back, thief and policeman, with the same goal : ) And I wanted them to be efficient, since they're supposed to be the 'adults' there... Yea, let's save Kaito ! :D (Short ? That's good to me already, don't worry : ) )**

 **JazayZ : Haha, like me then^^ Lol, I didn't know you'd be happy with the pat... Anytime ? xD Yea, it was time for Touichi to appear : ) I know I could trick you a little bit by changing the points of view and making you think everything is at the same time when it isn't but nah, not this time : ) Maa creativity is good, since you're an author, let it run freely : ) Oh, thank you ^^ I wanted everyone to have his share, wanted the girls to save the day also : ) Yea, I was also thinking about the original scene... But there was enough drama with Kaito half dying, I wasn't going to put rocks under Heiji's feet ; ) Yup... Since we had no information on the MKO's Boss, I preferred to develop the characters we already knew and with who there are already strong interactions (like Hakuba and Spider, Kaito and Snake...). I already wrote a bit about the guy's background in Alliances and, except the fact he perhaps grew greedier with time, there wasn't much to say...**

* * *

 **Chapter 20 - Life**

* * *

Two hours later, it was with tired faces the friends arrived at the hotel the others were already in. It took all the staff's professionalism not to stop them from entering, with their dirtied faces and clothes, even blood for some if you looked too closely... But Hakuba had headed with confidence to the reception, announcing he was a guest of Koizumi Akako.

The girl had apparently warned them as they were clearly identified as customers starting that moment and one of men hurried to lead them to the elevators.

Still in black though he dropped the hat, the monocle and the cape, Touichi welcomed them when they arrived, probably as hearing the elevator was arriving, and led them to a large suite.

"- I'm Kuroba Touichi" The man introduced himself as they came in, deciding to be honest, knowing from Chikage that Kaito's friends were already aware of who his son was. "Kaito's father. The first Kaitou Kid. Rumours of my death were a bit exaggerated but, for various reasons, starting with protecting my family, I had to disappear."

The friends exchanged startled looks, introducing themselves quickly to stay polite despite their surprise, eyeing the man with a different look now.

"- Chikage has left to fetch us some food, she should be soon back. You should rest after that, there's nothing else we can do for him until tonight..." The Corbeau pointed out with a dark face.

The group looked at each other, forced to finally face the truth.

That was it.

The only thing they could do was to wait in the hope something would happen in the evening.

"- Saguru... Do you really think it could work ?" Shinichi dared to ask, looking at his friend.

"- ... I don't know... I'm not sure myself but I saw... Some things. And the other solution is to accept my best friend's death, who'd want to believe that...

\- Then I'll trust your judgement... I'll be lying a bit, I barely stand after what happened..." The Tokyoite admitted, feeling his legs were shaking under his weight, still feeble after his poisoning.

"- The whole floor has been booked for us, take whichever room you want." The black Thief proposed with a gesture to the door.

"- I'll be coming with you." Ran said, offering his support to her boyfriend.

Heiji was a bit surprised to see he gave up all pride and accepted, against all his principles, usually unable to accept help and refusing to display any weakness, proving how shaken he was to have to trust something he didn't understand to save the life of one of his best friends.

The Osakan himself was a bit uneasy at the idea... Yes, he couldn't deny he didn't believe in a little something out of the ordinary from time to time. He had already experimented some kind of premonition and had a superstitious trust in his o-mamori but a healing stone ? That was beyond what he could usually accept.

The dark skinned detective looked at Saguru, seeing he was tense but also seeing he kept a small sparkle of hope in his eyes. Just as he admitted, whatever happened that had been able to convince someone as Cartesian as him, it must have been a shock since it forced him to imagine a whole new world to which he seemed to give some hope.

"- I'm going to see him." Hakuba suddenly decided, heading to the door.

"- Your friend may not accept, she refused to let me in, she accepted only Aoko." Touichi informed him with a touch of bitterness in his voice.

"- I'll nevertheless try."

Heiji followed with the eyes the blond-haired who was leaving the apartment and decided to try to lay a bit, unable to do anything else, in need of food after that fight, having to get some strength back after his wound and his forced bath but he knew he'd have to wait a bit

"- I'll be also goin' ta rest a bit... " He announced, heading to the door. "Could ya call me when Kuroba-san is back ? I really need ta eat somethin'.

\- I think there are some things in the mini-bar..." The magician smiled, fetching a bottle of water and some chocolate bars from it to throw them at the detective. "That should help you to hold on !

\- Thanks ! Kazuha ?

\- Yea, comin'."

The girl followed Hattori with a yawn, starting to have a headache due to her tiredness and gladly welcoming the idea of a warm shower and a bed.

After they exchanged a last nod, Touichi walked to an armchair near of the window and sat in it. He knew he'd never be able to sleep, not with his son in a critical condition at the other side of the wall. His eyes fell at the building facing the hotel, the very one where Kaito had been... He knew that, if he squinted enough, he'd be able to see the exact spot where he had found his son, but he didn't want to give up to such thoughts.

Now that he was alone, knowing he had done everything within his powers and that there was nothing left he could do for his son, the first Kaitou Kid took his head into his hands and, finally, for the first time since long, too long, he let his Poker Face crack, allowing his fears, his sadness, his angriness, all those feelings he was keeping deep in him since last night, to fight each other on his face.

o.O.o

"- It's me." Hakuba announced, after he knocked on the room 2452's door.

After a little while, Aoko slowly opened the door. She looked tired and tense, he could see it from her clenched jaw.

"- She said you could go in, but try not to tire her too much..." The girl explained with a low voice.

With a nod, Saguru came in and closed the door after him. He was expecting what he was going to see but still couldn't refrain from having his breath knocked out when his eyes fell on his best friend. Kaito was just like the detective remembered. He was wearing his white suit, with his tainted jacket, and there was no accessory left to hide his head. Due to the blood-loss, his face was now almost as white as his costume, marked by the pain he had probably been through. His whole body was surrounded by a reddish light and, he noticed it just now with panic, it wasn't moving. At all. Not even the slightest move of his chest, not even a sign to indicate he was breathing anymore.

Falling on his knees, he was stretching his hand to touch his best friend with shaking fingers when Akako finally spoke.

"- He's alive, Saguru-kun, I can assure that to you.

\- But he's not..." the blond-haired man wondered, swallowing to try to get rid of the lump that had formed in his throat.

"- I froze his time." She announced, almost with a casual voice. "Each breath he was taking was bringing him closer to the Other World, it was necessary to stop that as soon as possible..."

Akako hadn't spoken for long but she started to pant, a drop of sweat rolling along her perfect face, her back tensing from the effort she had to provide.

"- Are you alright ?" The half-brit asked with worry as he saw her uneasiness.

"- This is really advanced magic... I am at the edge of my powers and this exhausts me.

\- Anything we could do to help ?" Aoko asked, having also noticed the witch seemed more and more tired.

"- Could you bring me something to eat ?" Akako asked with a small smile. "I'm not sure it'll be sufficient to replenish my powers but it's worth a try.

\- Sure." The girl said, going at the door. "You'll stay here, Saguru ?"

The blond-haired detective's eyes were back to his friend, as hypnotized by the red light.

"- Saguru ?

\- Uh, yes, I'm staying." He confirmed, focusing back on her.

As she left, Hakuba, out of habit, took his pocket watch out.

"- When do you think the moon will be high enough to lighten this place ?

\- A little bit after half past seven.

\- You did your homework." He commented, surprised by her quick and firm answer.

"- I had to. For him.

\- Sorry... I didn't manage to...

\- It's ok. Fighting against my visions has always been extremely hard and, even I, succeed only rarely...

\- This leaves quite a bitter taste in the mouth...

\- Yes."

The detective went quiet again, putting his watch back into his trousers.

There were ten hours remaining.

o.O.o

"- Oh, Otou-san." Aoko greeted as she came into the suite, noticing he was now in the living room. "You arrived long ago ?

\- Just arrived, I met Chikage-san on my way as she came back from her shopping..."

The girl had a small smile as she turned her head to see the woman she considered as her own mother in the flat's kitchen. "Do you need help ?

\- I wouldn't say no, there are quite a few sandwiches to prepare... Let's leave the boys at their chat, I bet they have a lot of things to reminisce about..." She answered with a sad smile on her face.

"- Thanks..." The inspector said as he saw his girl heading to the kitchen.

He took the armchair near his old friend, sitting in a noise of creaking leather.

"- It's been a long time, eh..." He concluded with a little sigh, looking in front of him just as Touichi was.

"- Indeed..." The magician agreed, leaving his daydreaming, his Poker face now back.

"- Will I get an explanation, Touichi ?"

Kuroba turned his head to look into his best friend's eyes. They were now relatives, thanks to Kaito and Aoko's wedding. Part of one big family. But even without that, that man had been his best friend for years, he deserved to know.

"- I am, I won't hide it from you, a thief. That's my nature. Though the loot isn't what I'm looking for. I like the excitement of the heist, the excitement of the chase with the police, with you, with some others like Kudô's father. I was enjoying my life like it was, with my wife, my son, the magic. But that Organization we destroyed last night ruined it all.

They contacted me, one day, during one of my heists, asking me to look for a certain jewel, the one we retrieved tonight. I didn't cooperate long with them, as I soon noticed they were more killers than gentlemen thieves so I tried to stop working with them. They immediately wanted to get rid of me, attempting on my life a few times, though without any success. My luck changed, unfortunately, when they discovered who I was, allowing them to pressure my family.

And then, that night, they attacked me. Two of them sabotaged one of my spectacles and I barely escaped, by pure luck, one of them even got caught in the explosion during that fight. That's when I saw my chance. There was body in that blaze, so burnt the only thing the police could ever conclude was the fact that it was a man. And no one had yet seen I managed to escape the blast. This was an opportunity I couldn't let pass. If everyone thought I was dead, including Them, They'd stop menacing Kaito or Chikage. So I organized this little comedy, with Chikage's help, and that seemed to be enough to stop them from lurking around my house. I kept fighting against them but abroad, under the Corbeau's identity.

\- Kaito didn't know until tonight, right ? " The inspector assumed, remembering the surprised face of the young adult.

"- We didn't tell him. He was too young to be convincing enough and since I wouldn't be with him, better for him to ignore it.

\- Better, eh..."

The Thief's eye's corner twitched a little at the hidden reproach about Kaito's current condition. "I wasn't expecting he'd take the Kid's cloak... I won't say I wasn't proud he did, knowing how young he was when he started, it's just that I regret I let him now...

\- So many lies, so many hidden truths... I'm a simple man, Touichi, and I can't say I understand all those complicated choices of yours..." The inspector sighed, rubbing his eyes to get rid of the tiredness that was settling in his body. He raised his look to the ceiling, reminiscing those days and what he felt when he thought he had lost his best friend. "I think I've always known you were the Kid... And that Kaito had been after you. It's just that I didn't want to face it. And denied all the indirect proves I could notice... I tried to investigate your accident, but never found anything. I was sure it wasn't one, I knew you wouldn't be the kind to take such risks with your family on the site but I could never find anything. Had to force myself to stop looking at it, it was starting to be an obsession and I was alone with Aoko, I had to focus on my job and on her... I'm glad you're alive, old pal, but I honestly don't know what I should do. Aoko would kill me if I tried to arrest any of you but the only other solution is to quit my job. I will never be able to face the Kid or the Corbeau again.

\- You won't meet them again...

\- What ? Are you giving up thievery ?" Nakamori wondered, turning his head at his friend with a surprised face.

"- The Kid and the Corbeau had only one mission : preventing the Organization to find Pandora and finding a way to destroy them. This being done, I'm planning to go back to my life as a magician, it's time for me to stop all that stuff. Kaito... Kaito took that suit out of revenge, and, with me alive, that revenge has no meaning anymore. Whatever happens tonight, I think yesterday was the last appearance of the Kaitou Kid... I just want to believe Kaito will survive it." Touichi finished, clenching his jaw.

"- Kaito is a strong one, Touichi. Trust him, if there's any way to get out of this situation, he'll grab it."

o.O.o

Almost ten hours later, after a long day for everyone as none of them had really been able to get some hours of sleep, the tension was reaching its height.

"- 19:29:45." Saguru stated as he got up under the others' looks. "It is time."

Touichi also got on his feet and followed the blond-haired to the hallway.

This was the time.

The time to know if that mad belief in a stone would be able to save his son.

"- Akako !" They heard Aoko's voice at the other side of the room's door.

Slamming it open, the magician saw that the red light connecting the witch to his son was now gone and that he was back to his pained and harsh breathing, the one he heard when he had brought him here. Akako, on her side, was lying against Aoko, with closed eyes, clearly unconscious, exhausted by her effort, unable to hold on anymore.

"- Calm down, Aoko-kun." Hakuba said with a calm voice, bending to take the witch in his arms and put her in the bed that had been moved in a corner of the room. "She said it could happen, she told me she explained you how the stone would work ?"

The girl nodded, bringing her hand at her neck where she had put the jewel, to feel its reassuring weight each time she looked at Kaito.

"- Let's go then." The Corbeau concluded, taking his son in his arm with delicacy.

With a stable but quick pace, the man walked through the corridors, Hakuba on their side with his hand on Kaito's wrist to check his pulse and Aoko just behind them with the Sunrise Ruby.

The others had been staying in the hallway and were seeing for the first time the badly wounded Thief, all displaying horror on their face, at different degrees though, finally understanding that, if Kaito lived the night, it would meant they'd witnessed a miracle. Chikage forced herself to move, knowing she had to be there, and her move took the others out of their stupor, so they soon started to also head to the roof.

As they reached the top, Hakuba let go of the Kid's arm and backed away while Touichi delicately put him on the roof's floor, taking his hand in his as he felt the indigo-eyed was tensing, struggling against the last remains of pain that were going through his body, the last ones before his last journey.

Aoko was staring at the skies, tapping her feet on the floor as the moon was suddenly hidden by a cloud. Squeezing the jewel she had in her hand, she prayed whatever Kami she could think of to blow it away. And finally the light of the moon bathed them in its gentle light, so she hurried to kneel near Kaito's face.

The blond-haired on his side was trying to keep a straight face as he felt, hand on the Thief's throat, his pulse was fading away, now reaching zero but he had to stay focused, and Aoko too, he couldn't allow her to panic just at that moment.

The girl saw, just on her right, the comet of Volley finally becoming visible, the brightest star in this summer sky, and, just as told, she took the jewel above Kaito's mouth, holding it by the metal encircling it in one hand, opening her husband's mouth with the other.

After an instant that seemed to stretched indefinitely for everyone, the jewel, as if it had stocked the moonlight it received, suddenly emitted a bright light, dazzling all the ones around, a single red and shining tear forming under the Ruby that fell right between the Kid's teeth.

Letting the stone fall on the ground, Aoko took Kaito's other hand, feeling with fear how cold he was. "She said that... that it should be enough !" She stuttered as she saw the magician had no reaction.

"- Come on... " Hakuba said with a low voice, bending his head against his best friend's chest to try to hear any heartbeat. "You did the hardest, you just have to have that damn heart to start to beat again..."

Everyone was tensed around them, most forgetting to breathe, too disturbed to even think - which was meaning a lot to some. The doctor was thinking about trying CPR for a second when he saw Kaito's chest was finally raising and he suddenly opened his eyes, starting a coughing fit as air filled his previously empty lungs.

"- Kaito !" Aoko said, throwing her arms around his neck with tears in the eyes as she saw he was looking at her, a faint smile appearing on his face as he recognized her.

Saguru let himself fall on his bottom, exhausted, when he saw the magician was moving again.

The Kid gently patted Aoko, eyes looking at the skies, at the moon.

His head was filled with questions but there was one thing he was sure of.

He shouldn't have been alive but nevertheless was.


	21. Chapter 21 - Wedding

**Heya !**

 **Hey, it's been a long time we hadn't a chapter ending with a cliff, hope you enjoyed it : )**

 **So next is... *looks at her chapter* Hmmm... Surprise ! :p**

 **o.O.o**

 **emmahoshi : haha, thank you : ) Well, being a reader before being an author, I'm exactly like you on that matter. It's so hard to find a good fic and see it stop in the middle ^^; So I promised myself not to do that. And I write a lot beforehand so if any writer block should appear (never did but well), the readers wouldn't feel it as I'd have enough time to get over it. Yea, I think even a Cartesian, when there's no hope in science, may accept something... Unusual ? Strange ? Hardly but when there's nothing else... Hmm when I think Heiji's father is just unable to display any emotion (when there is, somewhere under his hard eyes - damn, *pats Heiji* we got the same father) I think Touichi is able to show a lot. In Kaito's memories in the manga, he's always cheerful, nice... But he never shows any negative feeling, he just bottles them up... Haha, yea, having a clock-freak can be useful ^^ Haha, is it the last chap ? Or not ? You'll see ~**

 **Anilover : Yep, he's alive ! ^^ Sooo I won't spoil anything, most of the questions you asked have their answers in that very chapter : )**

 **Hello : He's the med here, I can't hurt him too much. But...*evil laughs* Keep reading... :p**

 **Laury Rose : Of course he will : ) Haaa, interesting question, answer in that chapter :p And you'll have your briefing : ) Hmm that's how I imagined it could happen : ) Just Touichi being protective, too much maybe, as he should have told Kaito when he chose to turn into the 2nd Kaitou Kid *shrugs* Hard to say a truth that could have your own child hate you, nah ? Haha, yes, I think some of the lot may have been perturbed xD I think that Hakuba would have it the hardest but he had been a bit prepared by Akako in the earlier chapters so it was easier : )**

 **Lady Paper : Ah, answer in that chapter as to what's Kaito's status now ; ) here, the wait is over ! ^^ *chû!*(evil writer ? naaaaah... *looks at her chapter* ok, yes }=) )**

 **JarayZ : Hmm since you write fics and reviews, I'm sorry to say I won't believe you when you say you're half cat, no way you can type with cat paws :p Pat is... there's that comfy feeling in a pat yes, I guess I understand why you'd meow ^^ Maaah, I also can be a bit weird in my creativity (...me and my 'I like to hit things and chars' ^^; ) but... It's funnier like that, don't change : ) Forcing oneself to fit everyone's tastes is just impossible for a lot of reasons ^^; Oh, glad I could write an even cuter chapter then :p But yes, as I said already, this story turns out to be darker than expected... MK's world is darker than I thought ! You may find some cute moments in that chapter, hope you'll enjoy them^^ PS : Uhh sorry, indeed, I misspelled your pseudo the last two times ._. Glad to know you took it on the bright side, I would really have not liked to upset you about that, that could have been pretty rude of me^^;;; I personally prefer JarayZ but JazayZ is nice too, makes me think about the Jazz music so yea, it has its cool side... But it's perhaps a bit hard to say? xD Nevertheless, I'll be cautious from now on (but will know that, if I write it wrong, you'll like it :p)**

* * *

 **Chapter 21 : Wedding**

* * *

Lost in his thoughts, Kaito was finalizing the knot of his necktie in front of the mirror. He was wearing a dark suit, with a blue shirt and a white tie. The missing accessory, a dark hat of the same shape than the Kid's with a blue stripe, was still on his bed.

The magician was looking in front of him but any observer would have seen his eyes weren't focusing. Being day-dreaming wasn't really his thing : usually he _seemed_ to be daydreaming but it was because he was focusing on preparing his new heist or any other prank... But that wasn't the kind of daydream he had nowadays. Though who wouldn't have been lost in his thoughts after everything that happened to him ?

Three months had passed since that night the Volley comet crossed the skies, allowing Pandora to deliver the tear that saved his life. The Thief had been through such pain when Snake had shoot him, that he had knew, he had been sure of it, that he was going to die, he had felt it.

So that was with the greatest wonder he had woken up the day after, his friends and family around him, all staring at what had been a deadly wound on his torso and had been, once the stone released its powers, just a bloody spot on his unharmed skin.

His family... His father had been the second face he'd spotted after Aoko's, since he was the one holding his other hand. His long lost father, the man he had to grow up without almost all his life was keeping his hand in his, his Poker Face forgotten, his eyes shining with relief, a gentle smile on the face.

It had been hard for the magician to stay calm but he nevertheless had to, his body being too feeble for him to overreact. He had recognized the black suit, the one of Kaitou Corbeau, a thief he had faced four years before. Back then, noticing of course the similarities of the two Kids, except for the colour, at the opposite of his, the glimpse he could have of his face had left him startled, on the verge to believe the impossible : a Kuroba Touichi that would have been alive. But those doubts had been swept away by a mail from his mother about the case, with information only he Corbeau knew and he had believed she had been under the dark cape.

The truth was quite different... And harder to accept. His mother and his father had been hiding the truth to him for 12 years... More than half his life.

The first days had been pretty hard on him, his mood switching between extreme joy to have his father back to him and angriness of having been deceived by his own family : despite the long chat they had had after he woke up, all the arguments he gave him, none seemed good enough to him. And they wouldn't change the fact his father wasn't even here at his wedding, too tangled in his own lies. And the fact his parents had let him become a criminal for a revenge that had no meaning. Add to that the fact Nakamori-keibu had discovered he was the Kid and his father the previous one, yes, Kaito had to admit it, he had been extremely fool-tempered the first week, finding it hard to go back to his usually easy-going character.

Until Aoko stuck her foot in it.

The girl had been silent at the beginning, a bit afraid for her father, as he had learned the truth she had been hiding to him for four years and along, the fact she had been lying to him. She apologized many times, heart filled with guilt, to discover a light of understanding in her father's eyes. The inspector, despite what she had feared, _understood_. Understood the fact she didn't want to take the risk to break him, even if that meant being dishonest, trait that was absolutely against her nature but she couldn't think of any other option. Understood that those regular trips she was doing with Kaito, were also for both men not confront too often. If anything, getting over that lie eventually brought them closer.

After settling her own problems, she noticed her husband was trying to deal with his own and quite clumsily to her opinion. And she didn't hesitate in pointing that out to him. With her very honest vocabulary.

It was the first time since long she had had to raise her voice against the Kid. Aoko had herself lost her mother and she knew she would have done anything she could if there was the slightest chance to bring her back. But that was impossible. Kaito, on his side, had seen the impossible happen : his father was back to him. He called it deception, she called it miracle. And she figuratively kicked his butt until he understood that, whatever the truth behind what was happening, one week before his father was dead and now he was alive.

Facing this new point of view, the magician had stopped pouting and had accepted to visit his parents with Aoko for more chats, to make up for lost time.

And it was with honest sadness, of course well hidden under his Poker Face, just as his father had taught him, he had waved goodbye to them when they left to go back to Vegas one month after those events. They had of course proposed to the couple to join them but Kaito wasn't in the mood to. He liked Japan, he had his friends there, he knew Aoko wouldn't like the idea of leaving her father alone, nah, they were better here. And now that there weren't any secret left between them, it would be easier to talk with both his parents.

Kaito focused back to his tie, putting a pin with a pearl in it but accidentally pricking himself with it, to the point a single drop of blood came out of his finger. Quickly licking it, it was with an almost depressed sigh he saw it already closed by itself.

That had been the second reason of his daydreams.

Immortality.

He had of course had a little... ok pretty long chat with Akako after his miraculous healing. First to thank her, as he was absolutely aware the girl saved his life, not even minding putting herself in danger for magic overuse. The magician kind of knew she'd been attracted to him and was a bit embarrassed, not really knowing how to thank her without dragging her in a disillusion. He had finally decided just to go for words and jumped at the opportunity to ask her a bit more about his condition.

The witch had been extremely honest with him. Yes, he now was immortal. Not aging anymore and able to heal from any injury or illness, whatever the seriousness, though not shielded from the pain caused by it. His life would know no end. What had been the Organization's Boss wildest dream was now happening to him but he saw no reason to rejoice.

How could he happy knowing he'd have to disguise himself all his life, to hide his 21 years old face that wouldn't be aging ? How could he be happy knowing he'd be burying every of his friends and his relatives ? How could he be happy to know he'd have one day to part with Aoko, the love of his life, and to live countless hours, days, months, years even without her ?

Kaito was afraid, in fact, of what was happening to him. This immortality most were dreaming of was just a promise of a lonely and hidden life...

The magician forced a smile on his face. No use in dwelling with something that would hinder him only in years. Now, he just wanted to live his life at its fullest, enjoying every pleasure of it.

"- Kaito, you ready ?" Aoko's voice asked after a knock on the door. "It's time to leave for the wedding !

\- Coming !"

The Kid looked at the window with fond eyes as he remembered his own wedding when he saw the trees outside, covered with scarlet and golden leaves.

Autumn, the best season for a traditional marriage. They had been hesitating, with Aoko, to celebrate their in autumn too, but finally went for spring and its Sakura. He honestly hadn't been expecting at that time the next couple to marry after them would be Kazuha and Heiji.

Kaito let a grin on his face as he thought the detective of the West's mother had very probably everything to do with the quick organisation of this wedding. Seeing how those two were, it was clearly better to marry them fast, before they'd even think about stepping back.

That was nevertheless impressive the families had been able to organize the ceremony so fast and it had been clearly possible only thanks to the many connections the three parents had in Osaka.

The price to pay was that they had to settle for an intimate marriage, with only their parents and their closest friends. They'd go for something bigger the next spring.

But that wouldn't mean they wouldn't be having fun today.

Smiling with anticipation, the former Thief grabbed his hat and headed outside.

o.O.o

Heiji lowered his eyes as he felt Kazuha's head on his shoulder, the girl starting to doze off after their very busy day.

He knew he had been keeping an idiotic smile on his face the whole day but who wouldn't have ?

He had been welcoming his fiancée in a little temple nearby, waiting in his grey hakama and black kimono vest. The girl had arrived, stunning in her pure white kimono and hat, the only touch of colour being her red lipstick, scarlet cherry on her delicate face. Her green eyes had met his and her face, so solemn as she came in, lightened in one of the most beautiful smile he had ever seen.

The dark-skinned barely remembered the ceremony, except perhaps for that exchange of a cup of sake, as he had been extremely careful not to make it fall, shaking as he was on that day. He remembered passing it to Kazuha and then to his best man and to the maid of honour, Shinichi and Ran, of course, both with eyes filled with sparkles, happy for their friends and very probably picturing their own future union.

After the ceremony, they had headed to a Ryokan they privatised for the occasion, a bit remote, surrounded by the trees covered with their autumn's dresses, wooden house in a scarlet field of Momiji. The room they were in was decorated in a traditional style, with some paintings on the walls, some fine ceramics here and there and, as a reminder of the Kendo so dear to the Hattori family, two katana and one old samurai armour were exposed in some alcoves.

Heiji had a satisfied sigh as his eyes laid on the green-eyed woman on his side, now dressed into a reddish kimono with a Sakura pattern, not that different of that one she wore when he had, without knowing it was her, met the one he called later his 'first love' in Kyoto as a little boy.

It was now pretty late in the night and the staff had been leaving the place long ago already, leaving them with a few bottles of sake and the keys to unlock each guest's room as they would all be sleeping there tonight. Chats between the guests were still going on here and there, though they were quieter. On the Osakan's left, his parents were chatting, still a proud look on their faces. A bit further, Shinichi, Ran and Aoko were sharing one last drink, while Tôyama-han was commenting, still impressed, the performance Kaito had realized during the evening to entertain them.

Managing finally to escape the man, the magician nudged Hakuba to propose him another drink.

"- No, I'm good, Kaito-kun..." The blond-haired refused, feeling he already had his share and not wanting to add more.

"- Kaito will do, Saguru..." The Thief scolded with a little smile, embarrassed by such ceremonial after all they'd been through together lately.

"- You know I don't really feel at ea..." The other began, though quickly stopped at his best friend's face with a little laugh. "Alright, _Kaito_.

\- Good." The magician answered, rising his empty glass to his eyes' level before making it disappear and reappear a second later but full.

"- Ne, Kaito-k... Kaito...

\- Yes ?

\- I was wondering, why aren't you a world-class magician ?

\- I am." Kaito firmly retorted.

"- I guess... But you keep performing in small theatres, as if you didn't want to be famous..."

The Thief had a side look to his left, to see Tôyama-san was now chatting with Heiji.

"- It would have been too suspicious..." He admitted with a low voice. "If someone intelligent enough noticed that a well-known magician happened to be every time in the place when a heist occurred... Was easier to stay discreet.

\- But that's over now ?

\- Yup ! But I still have to _improve_ slowly, I can't pop extraordinary skills out of nowhere. Don't worry, I'll soon let my hidden potential show itself to the world and surpass all the others' !

\- I can't wait..." Saguru smiled indulgently at the ambitious goal of the indigo-eyed.

The detective had still his smile on the face when he turned his head to the shoji, hearing it was being opened.

That smile stayed as, frozen by astonishment, he saw a man, dressed in black, with a fedora on his head and a gun in the hand, come in.

"- Sorry to interrupt !" The intruder cheerfully said with a wide smile, aiming casually at the newlyweds with an evil smile.

Heiji, eyes wide with wonder, didn't even begin to move as he heard the bullet left the gun's chamber and was still frozen when a dark shape interposed itself between the couple and the shooter.

Kazuha, woken up by the noise, opened her eyes and screamed with horror as she saw her father, lying on the floor, a scarlet taint on his clothes, eyes opened towards the ceiling, though he very probably wasn't seeing anything anymore.

"- Ya bastard !" Heiji yelled, rushing to grab the katana from a nearby alcove and throwing himself at the moustache man, avoiding a bullet, almost reaching the one all the boys recognized as Snake but stopped when his left leg gave up under him, forcing him to toll on the floor with a pained grimace.

"- Heiji !" The Osakan girl called with concern, her eyes already filled with tears as she understood her father would not wake up and the one who did it was now trying to do the same with his husband.

Painting with pain, his hands trying to stop the bleeding from his thigh, the Osakan raised his head to see the aggressor that got him by surprise, a brown-haired girl with green eyes in her thirties, a smoking gun in the hand.

"- Don't move, boy... " She smirked, coming closer, her weapon still pointed at the dark-skinned.

A third man arrived, face hidden by a hood though Hakuba was quick enough to identify him by the blond bangs slightly showing near his face.

"- Spider..." He hissed with hate.

"- _Saguru-chan_..." The hypnotiser saluted, removing his hood to show his face.

"- Just how did he get out of jail..." Kaito wondered with a low voice, just heard by the half-brit.

The room was now silent, everyone observing each other, only disturbed by Kazuha's soft sobs, her father's unmoving head on her lap.

"- I think we made our point..." Snake announced with a smile. "If any of you moves, Rose will have the pleasure to get rid of that newlywed on the floor..."

Heizô, seeing the girl was pushing her weapon against his son's head to support her boss's speech, clenched his fists, to be soothed by Shizuka's hand on his, clearly telling him to stay still, that it was too dangerous.

"- You !" Snake ordered Aoko, sending her a pack of plastic zip ties. "Tie everyone's hands and feet, except the boys. No funny moves..." He added, narrowing his eyes.

The magician's assistant welcomed his ordered with a defying look but nevertheless obeyed with an apologizing look, having noticed Kaito's slight nod at her.

When she finished, the moustached man tied her himself and looked at his accomplice. "Spider, you tie their hands. And the one on the floor too. "

After the blond-haired obeyed, Snake grabbed the Osakan by the collar and lifted him from the floor, forcing him on his feet.

"- You guys come with us for a little walk..." He announced said with a menacing voice, before turning to the others. "If you value their lives, don't follow us."

Not able to do anything else at the moment, the four friends preferred to obey, to leave some distance between their beloved ones and those mad guys.

They were lead to a van where they were forced in the back, Shinichi trying to help as he could Heiji who was heavily limping. Snake and Rose settled on the front seats while Spider stayed at the back, his gun in the hand, just in case, under the glares of the three detectives and the Thief.

While the car left to its unknown destination, all were having a last look at the Ryokan when a bright flash erupted from it, before the whole house turned into a blaze, lightning the nearby Momiji with a light as red as their leaves.

Horror-struck, the boys looked at the flames under Spider's wicked grin as he saw their faces, while the two others in the front were not really minding, very probably being the ones who bombed the place and staying insensitive to their pain.

There was no way anyone could have made it alive.

Today was the day three of them lost the love of their lives.

* * *

 **Aaaand cut ! To be honest, I considered a little while to have Heiji's wedding as an epilogue... Buuuut that was funnier like that }=)**

 **Aaaand please refer to the warnings of the chap 16's intro before hating me too much :p**


	22. Chapter 22 - Locked

**Heya !**

 **Hope those of you who celebrated Thanksgiving had a nice moment : )**

 **It doesn't exist at all in France, though the shops are trying to introduce the Black Friday in here... So no family meal with a turkey or 'thanks' on Thursday but shopping on Friday... Money, always money... :p**

 **Well, back to the story : ) Sorry, but it won't fit Thanksgiving mood ^^;**

 **I guess most of you saw that coming, considering how the 21rst chapter finished, but I wanted to warn you that the next 2-3 chaps will be angsty :p. BUT never despair :p**

 **Since it's a dark and I wouldn't want to depress you all, I'll be publishing two chapters today, to allow you to see the 'light at the end of the tunnel' ; )**

 **Laters !**

 **PS : That's just how that story came to me so... don't think too badly of me ! I'll be softer in the next fic xD**

 **o.O.o**

 **emmahoshi : I'm so glad you write your review and read at the same time, this last review of yours was so interesting (and kind of fun ? Sorry^^), to see you from wondering if it was the last chap to a 'what's that mess?!'. That's what I wanted my readers to feel so it was nice to have your point of view : ) About the chapter count, sorry, it was purely coincidental I happened to have two 28 chap' long stories in a row... This one will be 26 chap' long I think, so a bit shorter.** **Haha, shouldn't you buy another keyboard ? xD But don't worry, as I already said, I don't even see those, my brain auto-corrects : ) Yea, when I chose to have Touichi alive, I knew that, whatever the reasons, Kaito's parents would seem heartless. But, as angry as he could be, I couldn't imagine him pouting forever. They already lost 12 years, better try to start something anew than not speaking to each other anymore, eh? Hmm while I'm** **curious to see what happens in centuries, being all alone and having to hide sound like a pain so yea, I don't think immortality is a gift. Let's hope they'll find a solution : ) Haha** **, I could really picture Heiji's mum running everywhere to organise things asap and stop the fiancés from running away xD** **Phew, glad you concluded by saying it was a compliment, I was afraid for a sec' I angered you with that chapter ^^; So thanks : ) The idea was indeed evil but the plot twist was so intense... I couldn't resist ^^;;;**

 **Laury Rose : Hmm while I prefer to use the term 'evil', 'sadist' seems indeed also appropriate... xD Yea, Kaito's immortal. He'll need another chat with Akako :p The question is, will she have any satisfying answer to him ? Hmm I thought that plan fitted Snake's cold heart, the guy has always been vicious so... Haha, yea, I should** **try to stay away from weddings for a while, I wouldn't want to bring bad luck with my wicked ideas ^^;;;;**

 **Great : The next chapters will reveal if it was one or another ~ Yea, we'll have to find something to get Kaito out of this !**

 **JarayZ : Haha, mine can type, he just sits on the keyboard or my hand when he sees I'm not looking enough after him. He's quite smart in fact, he's sure to have my attention while doing that ^^; There'll be cute moments of course, this is no death fic ^^; Oh, yea, you're one of the first ones being so enthusiastic after that chapter, with emmahoshi xD So thanks for appreciating it ^^ When that idea came, I had a stupid smile on the face, ok, this was evil but so exciting : ) Though, as you said, I'm not sure maybe all readers took it well ^^;;;; Hmm I think I said earlier I wasn't finished with Spider. But the guy was supposedly in jail, he got arrested after Saguru knocked him down with Shin's watch... So a bit of explanation as to how he ended in Osaka at the beginning of that chapter : ) Haha, well, you'll see what I answered them on hat matter then :3 Ps : Oh, ok : ) But that's fun, in French, when you read a 'Z' alone, we say 'Zed' so it's closer to Thai than to English ; )**

* * *

 **Chapter 22 : Locked**

* * *

o.O.o The night before the Volley Comet passed o.O.o

It had been with a satisfied grin Snake had given the Pandora to the Boss of his Organization. No need for intermediaries, this mission and its success threw him under the spotlight, promise of a new status and of a new recognisance. The fact he very probably killed the Kaitou Kid was just an extra, compared to the treasure he was bringing back : his Organization had been created in the very purpose to find that jewel and he was the one bringing it.

"- Thank you, Snake." The old man nodded with an avid smile on his face, eyes stuck on the stone. "Let me think for a while about the best way to thank you, I assure you won't have to complain about a lack of generosity. That stone is... Come back tomorrow night, I'll have thought about something.

\- Yes, Sir!"

A grin still on the face, the moustached man headed to the Organization's hidden garage to borrow a car. He wanted to go back to the museum. To make sure his Nemesis was dead, after he chocked in that pool of blood. To see his face uncovered, his family crying him, the Medias being shocked of the Kid to be such a young man. With a chill of excitement as he thought of all those consequences, Snake drove quickly back to the site of the heist, parking nearby.

Face filled with excitation, he pricked up his ears to listen to a couple of police officers near of the entrance, the men speaking with an excited tone.

"- Hey, you heard Kid didn't give back the stone yet ?

\- No wonder if you want my opinion... Kôta from the first division told me they found liters of blood on the roof of the museum...

\- Think he's been killed ?!

\- You bet...

\- But it's not like his body could have disappeared in thin air...

\- Hey, don't forget that guy is a magician, you never know what to expect with them !"

The first policeman gave a look of unbelief to his partner, not really at ease with his almost supernatural explanation.

Snake left them where they were and tried to spy more conversations, feeling more and more irritate to hear no one saw the Kid's body, starting to have the slightest doubt about the fact he managed to get rid of him... or not. But he was so sure he shot the heart's area, no one could have lived that.

And that's when he heard some passerby talking about a dark shape, just like the Kid's, but in a black outfit, that had been lurking, flying around the building, that he began to have an explanation. Kaitou Corbeau. He had faced that man once four years ago and the guy had seemed very protective of the white Thief.

He was starting to envisage looking for that second thief, thinking he may be able to find his pray with him, when he saw some agitation among the police force.

Once again coming closer, the moustached man froze when he started to understand what happened from the conversations he heard here and there. Nakamori-keibu's team was asking for reinforcements, in a villa at the east of the capital, where an explosion occurred when a helicopter crashed on the roof of the house. They had been arresting a lot of people apparently...

He stepped a bit apart, taking his phone out to call his favourite accomplice.

"- Rose ? " Snake asked when he heard someone picked up the phone. " What happened ?

\- The headquarters have been attacked..." The girl answered, panting at the other side of the line. "I could escape but we are very few to have managed to...

\- What about the Boss ? And the stone ?

\- Killed. His helicopter crashed on the roof apparently. The police don't seem to have found the stone yet but in such a blaze...

\- Any idea of who did that ?

\- Apparently a very small team, with some young guys and a police officer... Apparently also a dark-clothed man with an outfit similar to the Kid's.

\- Let me guess, the younglings were a blond, a dark-skinned and a blue-eyed, beginning of their twenties ?

\- Apparently. And two girls too. You know them ?

\- Yea. Where are you, I'm coming to fetch you."

The man with the fedora hung up and looked at his phone, shaking with rage.

Oh yea, he knew who did that. Those Hakuba, Hattori and Kudô had found a way to locate their base, at least in revenge, perhaps even to try to recover the stone in a desperate attempt to save that Kuroba's life.

And they destroyed his Organization in the process, preventing him of any reward for his hard work, for bringing the stone.

 _"_ _You're going to pay for this..."_

Despite the fact the man in black would have wanted to get rid of those men just right now, he knew it was too risky... And felt taking his time would only sweeten his revenge.

Waiting for them to go back to their stupid and peaceful lives.

And then taking everything from them, just like they did for him...

Feeling that two against four would perhaps be a bit harsh, he was considering hiring one or two accomplices when Spider's name popped into his head.

Snake didn't really like the man. He was arrogant. Always doing things his ways, not minding the orders.

But he was in jail because of those four. And despite his foul temper, he was, he had to admit it, pretty efficient.

With a grin, the man dialled Rose's number to ask her to "start a relationship with her _favourite_ magician that was unfortunately sent in jail".

And then their cooperation started, with Snake and Spider exchanging messages through Rose.

The blond-haired had only had one exigency. He wanted to have the half-brit for himself. He considered him as the responsible for him being in jail and he wanted to have his revenge.

His demand not being too unreasonable, Snake had accepted and had started, with Rose's help, to try to get some information about the three detectives and perhaps to spot the magician.

And quite quickly, the woman had come back with a wide smile on the face. Yes, Kuroba was alive, she saw him. And she knew exactly when the four of them would be together, having found about Hattori's wedding though one of their conversations she had been able to overhear.

And that idea had really been tempting to the three of them. Snake, who was looking for the best way to spoil those brats' life, liked the idea and had quickly been investigating it a bit more, discovering with ease the date and the place thanks to the official declarations of the event.

The day had come, and they had freed Spider the very morning of the ceremony, not wanting the guests to hear about this beforehand, to absolutely surprise them. Between Snake's skills in bombing, Rose's for infiltration ones and Spider's hypnosis, the man was quickly out of jail, a wide smile on his face as he got up in their van.

"- Time to have fun, gents..." He concluded as they stared to drive to Osaka.

o.O.o Back to current timeline o.O.o

Not really minding where they were taken to, their minds still blank from the shock, the four friends were searched and stripped from everything that could be a threat - they downright removed Kaito's jacket - before being brought in a former MKO hideout, one of those old mansion their Boss was so much fond of, the kind with some hidden underground.

They were led to a dissimulated staircase and, once they reached the bottom of it, Spider put a hand on Saguru's shoulder.

"- So, as promised, I'll be taking this one." He declared, starting to drag the blond-haired with him.

"- What the heck... " Kaito asked, waking up from his drowsiness when he saw his best friend was trying to wriggle to free himself as he was being taken away by the hypnotizer.

With a renewed energy, the magician got rid of his plastic ties in a flash and grabbed the first weapon he saw, the gun stuck into Rose's trousers in her back.

Stepping a bit backwards, he pointed the weapon at Snake, knowing he was in command and he was the most dangerous one. "Let them go." He ordered with a cold voice.

The moustached man had a smirk and had a little sign of the hand at Spider to stop him, knowing the man could, if he wanted to, force Kaito to drop his weapon, either by using his powers on him or threatening his half-brit friend.

But nah, he knew better than that, he was starting to know the little Thief.

"- Let them go or what ?" He asked, stepping towards the magician, his smirk still on his face.

As an answer, Kaito pushed the trigger and a bullet whizzed near the man, ending in the wall behind him.

"- My head is here, in case you didn't spot it." He mocked, pointing his chin with his finger.

The magician's face was straight but his hand was slightly shaking. Menacing, he could do, but killing someone on the spot, cold-blooded ? That was just against everything he was.

And, unfortunately for him, Snake knew that. "But you know what I think ? That you aren't able to do it. Just look at your hand, brat ! I killed your father, killed your woman. Your friends are going to die too if you don't do anything... And look at you, you can't even push that trigger, you wimp."

Kuroba looked at him, his hands shaking with rage as he thought about Aoko, his dear Aoko, killed by that damn murderer... He knew eternity was going to be long but he wasn't expecting to be separated from his love so fast. And he knew, he so damn knew that if he didn't pull that trigger, the others would probably be killed, and, since they took the time to bring them here, not of an agreeable way, if there was any to die.

With a frustrated cry as he understood he wouldn't be able to avenge Aoko, Kaito let the weapon go and fell on his knees, distraught.

"- You're no killer..." Snake stated as he took his own weapon out under the Thief's defying eyes that made him smirk. "Unlike me."

The three detectives' yells of "Kaito!" were covered by the detonation that echoed in the underground and it was with wide eyes they saw him fall on the floor, motionless.

Even if he knew that Pandora should have given him immortality, Hakuba tried to get free of Spider's grab, wanting to check his best friend, unable to stop himself to look him, his brain shrieking silently there was no one that could live such a shot.

The half-brit detective felt a sting in his neck and suddenly his legs gave under him : the blond haired magician, bored to have to fight him, stuck a needle in a specific place to knock him down, though avoiding any vital spot. Feeling his eyes rolled back in his head, Saguru was forced to finally welcome the dark velvet of the unconsciousness.

o.O.o

Hakuba's eyes snapped open as he groaned when he felt something went through his left thigh, triggering a pained discharge through all his body. Forcing himself to look around, he saw Spider was sitting just near him, his chin in his hand, looking at him.

"- I wasn't planning to go to such an extent but you were taking ages to wake up..." He stated to justify himself, though it sounded more like a complaint than an apology.

Saguru's look fell on his body, to see he was tied from toes to head to a table, and that a metallic needle was sticking out of his left leg, explaining the pain he previously felt. The detective closed his eyelids to breathe deeply, trying not to panic. Being unable to move and at the mercy of what he thought was a mad man wasn't good news and he was quite aware of it.

"- Hey, wake up !" The killer ordered with an annoyed voice.

The detective obeyed and opened his eyes, once again, to meet the other's look, noticing he wasn't wearing any make up so he could see his darker skin and a spider's tattoo on his left eyelid.

"- I haven't been able to rest in jail, don't think I'll let you rest here... I've been isolated, unable to free myself because the cops were being too cautious around me... I was there by your fault, _Saguru-chan_ , and I know you're the one who warned them about my skills... And that's two things I really didn't like. At all. So we're going to have a bit of fun before you die, brat..."

* * *

 **Hmm, among other things, that chapter also points out a question I've been thinking about, in the MK manga. What would Kaito do if he was able to corner Snake ? He's after him because he supposedly killed his father but since there isn't any proof, the police wouldn't help. And I don't see him becoming violent for that... Would he find a way to frame him for something ? Would Saguru help him to find some clues implying the guy in the explosion that 'killed' Touichi ? I really wonder... Hope we'll have an answer one day : )**


	23. Chapter 23 - Control

**As promised, second chapter of the day !**

* * *

 **Chapter 23 - Control**

* * *

Hazy-eyed, Shinichi shifted some of his weight on his other leg to bring back some blood in the first. He and Heiji and been tied to some rings embedded in a wall with some cord that had replaced the plastic zips. But the rings were just at their eyes level, forcing them to either stand or to put all their weight on their arms, because their heights wouldn't allow them to sit.

It had already been something like six hours according to his estimations they had been left like that, unable to sleep, well, that was if he had been able to.

The Tokyoite, despite the fact he drank a bit at the wedding party, was clearly and painfully back to his senses. The fact he saw the Ryokan blow up had a lot to do with it. He had been dozing off once or twice since and each time, Ran's smiling face had been appearing in his mind, bringing him to something close to despair each time he opened his eyes and had to face the truth, that she was gone.

After everything that happened, his own fight against the BO, even that night she saved him from that Scorpio, she had made it unharmed... or at least alive. Everything that could have put her in danger should have been behind them, after the destruction of the MKO. But that madman came, killing her in a flash, during what should have been a day of pure happiness, Heiji's wedding.

His eyes fell on his best friend a bit further on his right and his heart filled with compassion. The Osakan had lost everything that day. His parents. Their best friend, a man that had been an uncle to him and that became his father in law that very night. Kazuha, the woman he had barely the time to call his wife for a few hours before she was also killed.

The dark-skinned was very probably unconscious : he was holding only by the ties around his wrists, unable to stand on his wounded leg anymore after a few hours on his feet, and, seeing how white his hands were to hold his whole weight, this wasn't a position he'd be able to sleep in.

One of his grey hakama's leg was stained with what was now dried blood, though there was still some redder points here and there, implying he was perhaps still bleeding a bit or that it stopped not long ago.

"- Heiji, hold on..." He tried to encourage with a low voice.

Shinichi suddenly turned his head as he heard a grunt coming from the opposite side of the room, where Kaito had been tied just like them by Snake, a bit hesitant, but he knew he killed him that night he stole the Ruby and he was curious to see if he could also live this.

"- Kaito ?" The Tokyoite called, a bit louder than when he talked to the green-eyed detective.

The magician's wound was quickly closing now and he was starting to move a bit, to finally open his eyes, blinking a lot under the aggressive unnatural lights of the underground.

"- Kaito, you ok ?" Kudô worried, seeing he seemed a bit off.

"- ... Hurts like hell..." The Thief complained, feeling dizzy and with the worst headache of his life.

"- I think I understand why that old geezer wanted the stone..." Snake said as he entered the room, making both of them jump with surprise. "And that explains how you lived that injury I gave you that night. And yesterday's. Though it doesn't seem agreeable... " He concluded with a taunting smile as he approached Kaito and saw the grimace on his face. "Would deserve to see how you look like after one or two additional bullets...

\- Stop it !" Shinichi said, half ordering, half pledging, as the man took his gun out and directed it at the Thief.

"- Or what ?" Snake retorted, glaring at the azure-eyed. "No one knows you're here. Very probably no one knows you lot even disappeared... The police will have to inspect the remains of that Ryokan first and identify every single of your girlfriends before understanding you're missing. And that won't give them your location. So if you had any hope left, you better drop it now. You're mine. All of you."

o.O.o

Once again, for the tenth time already maybe, Hakuba snapped his eyes open, his mind still lost in the nightmare he was just getting out of, panting as if he had been diving and was just surfacing after a long apnoea. And this time again he was welcomed back to consciousness by a stab from one of those needles, forcing him to groan.

"- Tsk that won't do, you didn't even last three minutes in that last illusion..."

Saguru, despite the psychological and physical pain, did his best to compose himself and to glare at the man.

This was Spider's game : sending him in the darkest nightmares he could think of, where he had already seen each of his parents, his Baaya, Shinichi, Heiji, and now Kaito, killed in front of him, dying in the most horrifying cries, in way even his detective's mind couldn't imagine.

The blond-haired had nevertheless tried to fight : he was starting to know these illusions and had found a way to get out of them but that had quite annoyed the criminal who now, every time he was waking up too early at his taste, was hurting him mercilessly.

 _"This is bad... "_ the half-brit thought as he tried to calm down. With his medical formation, he could tell the man was just playing with him, clearly avoiding the lethal spots.

Physically speaking, the game could last ages but Saguru knew his mind would give up before that...

He was clearly feeling it was harder and harder to escape from those illusions because he was now fighting a small voice that was starting to be stronger and stronger, advising him to stay asleep instead of fighting and provoke once again Spider's anger...

And the worst were the nightmares... From seconds, he now needed a whole minute to readjust to the "truth" and to get rid of those fake deaths.

He didn't know how long he could stand those without losing his sanity...

Saguru closed briefly his eyes, wishing for someone who could get him out of this mess before he lost himself.

As if reading in his mind, Spider smirked at him. "Nobody will help you..."

And those were the last words he heard before the man sent him in another of his illusions.

o.O.o

It was Heiji's wheezes that got Shinichi out of his doze. The detective had been trying to get one or two hours of sleep, doing his best to settle himself against the concrete, but he slid twice already, awoken rather rashly as his arms tensed, sending a pained rush because they were suddenly bearing his whole weight.

Eyes now open, the Tokyoite observed both his friends, after what had probably been something like a day of captivity.

Heiji had been starting to shiver a few hours before, clearly from a fever, and had really woken up barely once since they brought them here. His look was so empty that time Shinichi was almost happy for him he wasn't able to stay conscious. He would have never imagined he'd see his usually cheerful and hot-blooded friend with such a depressed look, the kind that indicated he had lost all will to fight.

That look was mirrored by Kaito. Snake already came a few times and each of his visits had left the magician with a look clouded by pain, with less and less life in it each time.

Shinichi barely dared to think about Saguru, alone with that Spider... He had tried to ask for news when the woman, Rose, had been bringing some water for them, but she had refused to answer. Just like she also refused to bring any medication for Heiji, snorting that the result would just be the same so why bother ?

Clenching his teeth, Shinichi started to wriggle against his ties, despite the pain of the rope burning his wrists. That was enough. He had already lost Ran but he wouldn't be giving up, either his life or even his friends'. He was very probably the fittest of the four, it was his role to save them.

He had to succeed.

o.O.o

"- Kaito !" Hakuba yelled when he woke up, tears appearing at the corner of his eyes after he saw his best friend die again and again, just like that time Snake almost killed him, leaving the blond-haired helpless despite his knowledge in medicine.

The punishment wasn't long to come but he didn't even mind as the one thing that was really hurting him was that illusion since he was unable to remember what was true or not, his mind weakened after all those nightmares.

"- Stop... playing and just... end this..." Saguru asked, trying to give some strength to his voice, unable to stand this game anymore.

Spider approached his face closer to him, a mocking expression on his face as he saw the blond-haired detective's body was shaking. "Don't worry, _Saguru-chan_ , I think we're almost there... Just a bit longer..." He announced with a voice barely above a whisper.

The half-brit had barely the time to let a frustrated groan out of his throat before he felt he slid into the next illusion with a silent and desperate cry.

o.O.o

Something like a half hour after Snake's last visit, the detective of the East barely stopped himself from yelling with triumph as he felt his ties finally gave up after all his efforts. It was with absolute delight he let himself fall on the floor, his legs having a well-deserved rest as he could sit for the first time after more than a day on his feet.

Feeling he was going to doze off, he forced himself to stand once again, ignoring the complaints of his own body, knowing he just had to work a little more to end his and his friends' nightmare, he couldn't allow himself any rest yet.

Shinichi came closer to Heiji, to clumsily start to untie his rope but, with his friend's weight on it, getting rid of the knots was just...

"- Heiji ?" The detective decided to call, gently shaking his shoulder.

Breathing heavily as he came back to him, the Osakan opened a dull eye, not even seeming to recognize his best friend.

"- Heiji, I need you to stand or I won't be able to free you." Kudô explained in a whisper.

"- What's the use..." Hattori retorted with a hoarse voice as he understood what his friend wanted to do. "It's not as If I had anythin'... ta come back ta...

\- I can't believe... This isn't you, Heiji ! What good is there in you dying here? That won't bring them back, nothing will... Do you really think Kazuha would have wanted you to let yourself die ?! Or your parents ? Or even Ran..." He finished with a faint voice, his face filled with a sad determination, that last reason being the one thanks to which he was now standing on his feet.

At his wife's name, the Osakan had a shiver and gulped, doing his best to fight the grief his heart was overrun by.

Seeing his words finally brought some emotions back on the dark-skinned man's face, Shinichi locked his eyes in his. "We're not going to let them win. Now, get up ! You've seen far worse than this wound, I know you can stand !"

With a pained grunt, Heiji used the wall behind him and his friend's help to get up, finally releasing his arms and shoulders of the previous tension, the blood rushing back to his members, bringing with it a very uncomfortable sensation.

In a minute, the rope around his wrists fell on the ground and he and Shinichi turned to help Kaito, the Tokyoite supporting the Osakan who wasn't really able to walk around with his wounded leg.

"- Kaito ?" Shinichi called, coming closer, and he saw the Thief's eyes were opened but he wasn't looking at him. "Hey, Kaito ?" He asked again, putting his fingertips on the magician's cheek to have him look in his direction.

"- Shin... ichi ?

\- In the flesh ! We're leaving, ok ?" He stated, bringing a hand to the other's ties.

"- Don't bother... I'm too weak... And you got Heiji to take care of...

\- Stop sayin' bullshit... we're takin' ya with us." The green-eyed interrupted his friend, staring at him.

"- I don't risk anything in... staying longer here, unlike you... Keep your energy to come back with a rescuing team...

\- You're perhaps not risking anything physically but mentally... Just look at you..." Shinichi deplored, looking into the magician's eyes.

"- Who do you think I am... " Kaito retorted, forcing a malicious smile on his face. "I'm the Kaitou Kid, I'm tougher than that... Now, out ! I got my pick lock in a secret pocket on my belt... Get it, you'll need it... Time to use the skills I taught both of you, Meitantei."

Kudô grabbed the said item and, with one last nod, both detectives left the thief and headed towards any exit they could find.


	24. Chapter 24 - Out

**Heya !**

 **Let's go closer to the end and to something lighter :p**

 **For info, there are 2 chapters remaining after this one (well, one chapter and one epilogue)**

 **o.O.o**

 **emmahoshi : Yes, it's pretty interesting : ) Maa, being near of the end means another story will be here soon also so don't be sad ; ) Yes, I was fearing you could be using a laptop when I wrote that xD As long as it's limited to that kind of lag, yea, no need to throw away a whole laptop o.O Oh, glad to hear I reach 100 % :D It's just it's a bit difficult sometimes to write whatever I want : where I start a story and totally change the style after, I know some could be disappointed but... *shrugs* I also write for myself so if I'm not having any fun to try to stick to the others' will, that's not interesting sooo... Let me be evil ! xD And yes, I think we have all kind of readers and writers here, so we need some stuff for every taste : ) Though, yea, I'm not into AU either, I think that's the only style I have trouble to read. Ah, nah, Kaito is immortal and it won't change : ). Haha, 5% ? xD But I'm a bit like you, my fav' being Heiji and since Saguru is so mean with him, he was not in my fav' first... But the 2010-MK series, with Spider, changed a bit my mind : ) And I like his interaction with Kaito : ) Yea, those damn vilains have too many information on the boys :p Haha, yea, I can hear him... Don't hate me Heiji, promise, it's not as bad as it seems ! Ah well, some people told me Saguru was also getting out of those adventures unharmed, they won't be able to say that any more }=) Ah, a bit of extra gloom this chapter but after, promise, it's over ; )  
**

* * *

 **Chapter 24 - Out**

* * *

After they picked their cell's door, the two escapees had been trying to look for Saguru but the underground was wide and they had no idea of where he could have been taken.

"- Let's go out..." Shinichi decided with a low voice, seeing Heiji was starting to be too tired, needing to lean more and more heavily on him to move.

"- But Saguru... ?" The Osakan panted, looking at his friend with startle.

"- We're not going anywhere like this, we can't find him and you soon won't be able to walk anymore... Better the both of us to bring back reinforcements instead of all being captured again."

Annoyed to be the one slowing them down, the dark-skinned nevertheless nodded, understanding the Tokyoite's point, though he didn't like the idea.

Despite the fact they were quite taken aback as they were led down there, their brains had registered the path and they soon found their way to the house hiding the entrance of the underground, really close of their deliverance.

"- The van is here..." Heiji pointed out, pointing with the chin the dark shape of the vehicle he could see through an opened shoji.

"- And so is Rose..." Shinichi darkly stated as he saw the woman, a gun in the hand, guarding the outside. "Take that.

\- Uh ?" The green-eyed detective wondered, stretching his hand by reflex, to see there was now Kaito's pick lock in it.

"- I'm going to distract her, you, take the car and bring the police here.

\- But...

\- I'll be able to force her to chase me and it'll be easier for you to steal the van... It's not as if we could change roles."

The Osakan locked his eyes in his friend's. "Be careful.

\- As always.

\- I'll be back as soon as possible," Hattori promised with a firm voice, "so ya better stay alive."

Shinichi nodded with a small smile, and pressed one last time the dark-skinned man's arm. "Let's go!"

Kudô went out first, heading to the opposite side of the car, walking on purpose on some dead branches to catch Rose's attention.

And indeed, the girl quickly turned on herself, walking silently towards the noise, finger on the trigger, with a determined face.

Heiji waited for her to pass to limp to the van, doing his best to be the fastest possible despite the fact his leg was less and less responding to his orders and the exhaustion of his whole body. Opening the car door with extreme care not to make any sound, he slipped as he could on the driver's seat.

The noise of a few detonations made the detective sweat-drop as he was trying to pick the car's starter, knowing that each of those shots could be the one ending his best friend's life.

 _"Come on pal, ya better get out o' this alive... I don' have anyone left but ya three, I don' think I could stand..."_

His dark thoughts were brushed away when he finally was able to switch the motor on but a series of shots smashed the back window to bits, forcing him to bend his head, crushing the pedal to leave the place, leaving an angry Rose helplessly looking at him getting away.

He was free but grief overran the Osakan's mind because he knew... He knew that if that woman had been able to come back that fast to him, it meant she had been able to intercept Shinichi and, with a gun, there was only one way...

The pillars of his life were dying one after another, soon leaving him as an empty shell...

Heiji shook his head, trying to focus on his driving : it was now so hard to control the van as he was only able to use one leg, his hands still shaking after having so long supported his weight, physical and mental exhaustion starting to force his eyes to close.

And soon, after his eyelids fell against his will, the sound of a horn woke him, and the green-eyed had to suddenly turn the wheel to avoid a car in front of him but that sent his vehicle against a tree.

With the shock, the windscreen burst in a thousand of glass shards and the white airbag jumped at him, finally knocking him down, sending him in the dark oblivion of the unconsciousness.

"- Sir ?" The female driver of the other vehicle asked, having stopped to check on him.

Her eyes widened as she saw the strange outfit of the detective, still in his wedding clothes, partly tainted with blood, and saw his wounded wrists on the wheel.

"- What the... Anata, call an ambulance an' the police !"

o.O.o

It was with a half-asleep look that Kaito saw Snake entering the room he was locked in, his usual mocking smile on the face. Suddenly noticing he wasn't alone, the magician finished to wake up and had a panicked expression when he saw the one the moustached man was dragging behind him by his collar.

"- Rose found this little mouse lurking outside, while he was trying to save some time for that dark-skinned to flee with the car... " He spitted, letting go of his cargo just in front of the Thief. "Don't worry, I'll bring the other back to you. But I wouldn't want you to get bored while you wait for him so I planned a little animation, thanks to that girl... Since I can't kill you, I guess having your friends die in front of your eyes could make some damage..." He added, forcing the Tokyoite on his back for the Kid to see his face.

"- You bast... !" Kaito yelled as he saw with horror Shinichi was heavily bleeding from a stomach wound, panting from pain, eyes fluttering somewhere between consciousness and unconsciousness.

"- Wake up, you want to say your last words to your friend..." Snake mocked, grabbing Shinichi hair to force his eyes open.

"- Leave him !" The magician ordered, struggling against his ties as he saw the pain in his friend's look.

"- Oh, I will... It's not like he'll need my help to die from that wound." The man with the fedora snorted, letting his head go. "Enjoy his last moments, I bet they'll be long and painful. I'll be soon back with your other friend !"

And he closed the door behind him with a last amused smile.

o.O.o

When Saguru opened his eyes again, it was to see he wasn't tied anymore to his table. A little voice in the corner of his head was telling him it would be a good idea to try to escape but his tired mind pushed it away.

What would be the use... Why would he push his hurt and painful limbs when he had nowhere to go, when everyone he knew was dead...

 _"Were they ? "_ That little voice tried again.

He had no difficulty to ignore it that time. Of course they were. Each time he closed his eyes he could see how each died in front of him and how he'd been helpless to save them every single time.

"- You know what, I think it's time for our little game to end..." Spider smirked as he saw his clouded and dull look, not even trying to move when it would have been so easy now he was free. "Know why I didn't touch your right arm ?" He added, forcing something in the detective's right palm.

Turning his head, Hakuba saw there was one of those needles between his fingers.

"- You want it to be over, right ? Then take that opportunity to finish your miserable life. It's not that hard you know, you just have to stab it right here, between those ribs..." He said with a sweet voice, putting his finger against the blond-haired detective's chest to indicate the exact place. "And all the pain will be over."

The half-brit welcomed that last sentence with visible relief.

Just one move of the hand would end everything. He had wished for that, so many times already those last hours.

Then why was his hand shaking ?

o.O.o

Heiji came back to his senses as he felt some arms were dragging him out of the van. His shrouded mind identified the white uniform of two medics around him, who were starting to check on him, and just behind them, two police officers.

"- Hey, are ya ok ? " The doctor asked as he felt he was agitating himself. "Ya should keep lyin', it's not a good idea ta sit yet, ya hit yer head quite hard against that airbag.

\- I can'..." The Osakan refused, pushing gently but firmly the arm of the medic to sit. "Keiji-han, I was kidnapped, with three o' my friends, ya need ta help them !

\- Kidnapped ?" One of the policemen repeated, crouching to him with a raised brow.

"- Yea, me an' my friends, durin' my weddin', somethin' like 24 hours ago..." He declared with a look of embarrassment at his clothes. "I'm Hattori Heiji.

\- Oh, THE Hattori Heiji ?!" His colleague noted, recognizing the name, which wasn't that surprising to Heiji as he had guessed, from their accent, that he was still in Osaka's area.

"- If ya know me then help me ! Those guys are just crazy, who knows what they're doin' ta my friends at the moment...

\- Where are they ?

\- It's not far away but it's bit complicated an' the place is too big, I need ta lead ya there.

\- Not in yer condition..." The doctor objected with a stern look.

"- Gimme somethin' then ! Anythin' ta boost me up, I can' abandon them !"

The green-eyed detective's voice was desperate : he was feeling so guilty now to be out when his friends were still inside, not knowing what happened, fearing for Shinichi, after his fight against Rose, and for Saguru, since he hadn't had any news...

The medics and the policemen exchanged a look.

"- Ya, call fer reinforcement." He ordered to his colleague who stepped a bit away, his phone in the hand. "Ya come with us but we wait fer the others, they should be here in twenty minutes.

\- Twenty minutes ?!" Hattori repeated, knowing his friends would probably not last that long, not after they tried to escape. "That won' do... They know I escaped, it'd already be a miracle if they didn' kill them all... They're only three guys, with the two o' ya an' me guidin' ya inside, that should do, with the element o' surprise..."

The dark-skinned and the officer fought each other's look. Of course the officer knew the name, but that could be risky with such a small team, to hang around in an unknown place against some unknown opponents. But with the surprise and their small number, it could... And if indeed lives were at stake... The man sighed before turning to the medics "Would ya have anythin' ta support him a bit longer ?

\- That's no good idea...

\- Please." Heiji asked with a determined face.

The man sighed, getting up to fetch something in the ambulance. "That won' last long an' don' complain if ya faint after, yer body will have ta replenish his energy... An' I'll still bandage that leg first.

\- Noted."

o.O.o

"- Shinichi !" The Kid called with concern, when he saw he was clenching his hands against his stomach with a grimace, clumsily trying to compress his wound.

He didn't mind what could happen to him but to see Shinichi slowly dying in front of him, curled on himself in pain, just because he had tried to save them all was just... "Hold on !"

The azure-eyed detective opened an eye to look at him with a faint smile. "Don't worry... Heiji will be... here soon...

\- I'm already here !" The Osakan claimed with a proud smile from the other side of the door. .

His smile faded within a second after they broke in when he saw his best friend on the floor. "Shinichi !"

Heiji rushed as he could to him, putting his hand on his to try to slow the bleeding.

"- Call one o' the medic !" He asked with a pledging face to the policemen behind him.

The chief turned at the other. "Bring them back here but be careful, two of those guys are still around..."

They had indeed neutralized Rose who was guarding the outside but didn't meet yet the two males.

"- Heard that, Shin ? Help is comin' so stay with me, ok ?" The dark-skinned commanded, locking his green eyes with the blue, getting a small nod as an answer.

On his side, Kaito was being freed by the policeman remaining in the room. The man was eyeing with a startled look the clothes of the Thief, with its holes and blood stains, though the magician looked unharmed.

"- Not mine..." He grinned once freed, rubbing the back of his head with an embarrassment, hoping this excuse would be enough for the moment.

"- Seen Snake ?" Hattori asked, his attention still on Shinichi but knowing he was the most dangerous of the lot so they had to know where he was.

"- He left something like five minutes ago, he shouldn't be that far..."

The policeman and the two friends jumped as they heard a cry of agony, clearly from somewhere in the underground.

"- Saguru ?!" The Kid wondered with the greatest panic.

Stumbling on his feet as it had been so long he hadn't used his legs to walk, the magician rushed outside, pushing the policeman away, running like a mad in the hallways, kicking the doors open, desperate to find the room his best friend had been locked in.

And finally he found it.

And his face filled with horror.

The cry they heard before had very probably been coming from Spider, as the man was now rolling on the floor with, Kaito noted with disgust, a needle stuck into his left eye.

Ignoring him, seeing there was no way for him to hurt anyone at the moment, it was with shaking legs the former Kid approached his best friend, his body lying on a table, except for his right hand that was hanging down.

"- Saguru ?" He called, barely daring to touch his shoulder, seeing how hurt he was, but trying to catch his attention as he saw his eyes were open.

"- Kai... to ?"

The blond-haired detective identified the face but couldn't... How could his best friend be standing in front of him ? Wasn't he dead ? Was that another illusion ? Was he going to die once again ?

All those questions he couldn't find an answer to overwhelmed his mind, and his unconscious preferred to have him black out.

Kaito, after a relieved sigh when he saw his best friend was still breathing, gently took him in his arms.

"- It's over, let's get you out of here..." He said with a low voice, taking him with him to bring him outside.

o.O.o

Woken up by the call as he was having an involuntary nap in his office after a night of research about his son's kidnappers, Hattori Heizô had of course been warned that some team had found his son, somewhere in the mountain around Osaka. Without a word to his men, he had jumped into his personal vehicle, ignoring all speed limits despite the fact he wasn't in a patrol car.

Thanks to his rush, the Superintendent had reached the house just a few minutes after his men came in with Heiji, but that, he didn't know.

The only thing he knew is that he recognized the man who was trying to sneak towards the remaining car in front of the house.

The officer, having a good memory for faces thanks to his line of work, would have been able to identify that moustache and those evil black eyes half hidden under a black fedora even in a pitch black room.

"- Freeze! " He ordered with a firm voice, his weapon pointed at the man in front of him.

Perhaps it was just revenge.

Perhaps it was just time for him to retire.

As the satisfaction he had felt when the man had tried to get his weapon out had nothing to do with the sense of justice so dear to the police.


	25. Chapter 25 - Awakenings

**Hey there !**

 **Well, congratulations to everyone who held on until here and thanks for your interest : )**

 **This is the last "true" chapter, the** **next one is a kind of epilogue, just like Alliances, a few years laters. It's a bit sweet, a bit sad, but I wanted to write it to bring a conclusion about Kaito's immortality.**

 **Have fun reading ! : )**

 **o.O.o**

 **Anilover : Ahh no worries, as long as I can still interest you with that story, I'm good ! : ) Yup, they're down ! Aow, come on, I said no main killing without a bunch of warnings ; ) Ah, normal, there wasn't any part about that yet so answers in that chapter !^^ Hmm sorry but I'll NEVER write anything about second gen'. I love the DC characters and those are the ones I want to write about. Children aren't their parents' mirrors, so I'm not into that... And no, that's the end for that story, I'll start a new one soon : ) Oh, I like long messages, they are funnier so no need to say sorry for that :D**

 **emmahoshi : That's how I work at least... I know some authors are just the opposite and need some new ideas or themes to write : ) Uh, writing a thesis is... *pats* good luck with that, it must be so time consuming ._. Hey, who knows ? Maybe someone somewhere knows, next chap is Kaito crossing the world to find a way to kill himself, yay ! Ok, ok, I'm joking... though ? xD Haha, dear, I'm a humble scientist, I'm no literary person, but glad you liked that sentence : ) Hmm cruel, brillant... the gap can be so thin between those two... ; ) Ah, I think you perhaps thought it was Kazuha due to the accent but it was just a random couple of passers-by... Hey, you're even crueller than I am xD Nah, no way Heiji could close even an eye in that situation ! Save friends first, faint after : ) Yea, I wanted them to be a bunch of psychopaths.. That's how I see Spider and Snake at least ! Ah, well, I try to pay attention to little details, so nah, I didn't forget we were in Osaka^^ So nope, that woman wasn't Kaz' and, as to what happened between Saguru and Spider, more details in that chapter : ) Thank you ^_^ it came like that, I don't know why, but it also gave me chills when I put it into words... Glad you appreciated : ) Yea, new stories to forget one is over ! ^^**

 **Lady Paper : Haha, I don't know if I'm supposed to say sorry or thank you xD I'll go for a thank you, glad to see I'm loved xD Here is the almost last chapter, hope you're not to sad we're reaching an end : )**

* * *

 **Chapter 25 - Awakenings**

* * *

Kaito was waiting, his head in his hands, sitting on a chair in front of the ER. He had managed to sneak into the ambulance that left first, the one with Shinichi, as he had been the one needing the quickest medical attention.

The kind of wound he had wasn't typically lethal but, since he hadn't been tended immediately, the medics had been forced to keep focused faces, knowing his condition could turn from serious to critical any moment.

Saguru and Heiji had followed, he had seen they were taken to the same unit than the Tokyoite so he was now just waiting, trying to relax after everything that happened lately... His immortality was clearly not needing any more proof to be declared real, though he would have preferred to confirm it another way, as this one almost drove him mad from the unconceivable pain provoked by each of those mortal wounds Snake had been inflicting to him.

He shook his head, trying to get rid of the unbearable sensations he remembered, before jumping out of his daydreaming when he felt some warm fingers against his neck.

The magician's eyes widened as he turned to their owner, unable to believe what he was seeing.

"- Kaito ?" Aoko gently called, sitting near him. "The nurses told me you were here... Hey, are you ok ? " She wondered as, after a bewildered pause, he threw himself at her, grabbing her in a tight hug.

He buried his head in her neck, feeling her warmth, smelling her hair, his whole body shaking as relief overran his mind, forgetting those dark thoughts he had the last hours.

"- Hey, easy, I'm here..." The girl tenderly whispered, also hugging him and stroking his back to comfort him. She didn't know what happened but she felt he needed her support.

"- I thought... I thought I had lost you..." Kaito managed to admit with a low voice, still keeping her close to him, unable to let the girl go and not wanting her to see the emotion on his face.

"- Hey, I probably have something like half a century ahead, Kaito, don't think you'll get rid of me so soon in your eternity..." The dark-haired woman joked with a soft snort.

"- Yea, right..." The former Thief agreed, a small smile now on his face. "It's just those damn illusions, they were too real...

\- Illusions... ? Spider's ?"

Aoko felt his lover's nod against her head, confirming her fears. No wonder he looked so shocked, if he had though she...

"- I'm here now, it's over..." She said, holding him tighter.

o.O.o

Heiji woke up suddenly, jumping to sit but stopped by the fact he felt so feeble even lifting his own head was already hard. Settling down, he looked around him, recognising a hospital room.

 _"Must really have fainted then..."_ He thought, as the last thing he was remembering was that he had been near Shinichi, trying to keep him awake as he could, before being himself hit by some kind of drowsiness. _"Guess that medic wasn't joking about his drug taking its toll on the body..."_

The Osakan tried to look a bit at his wounds, noticing that his wrists were bandaged and that he was linked to an IV, very probably for medication, as he wasn't feeling feverish anymore.

He was trying to lift his cover to see his leg when his door opened, so he let the sheet down with a kind of guilty look, fearing he'd get scolded for trying to move so soon.

That look was quickly replaced by a blank face as he saw the one who entered.

The hard eyes, the tall size, the wide shoulders, the small moustache... The man Heiji was staring at, gaping as he took a seat near his bed, was his father.

"- It will heal, if that was yer question, just spoke with yer doctor. The infection had started to spread so they had ta operate but the after-effects shouldn't be too incapacitating. That'll just be another nice scar... "

The Osakan's mind registered the information with relief but he was still surprised-stuck.

"- Oh that fuckin' eight-legged rat..." He swore as his brain started to work again, understanding the trick Spider had been playing on them.

"- Language, son..." Heizô reproached with a reproving raised brow.

"- Is Kazuha all right ? O-kan ? The others ?

\- O' course... Two of your friends are still in the ER but... Did ya hit yer head that hard in that car accident ?

\- Nah, it's nothin'..." Heiji brushed off, closing his eyelids to let his mind absorb the sudden revelations.

All the ones he thought he had lost in that bombing were... Alive. Starting with Kazuha... The one who was now his wife. A strong desire to hug her, to feel her heartbeat against his chest, suddenly kicked in when he understood all those things would be possible again.

"- Heiji ?" The Superintendent called as he saw the detective wasn't listening anymore.

"- An'... Tôyama-han ?"

This time, the officer's usually straight face twisted a little bit, turning into a dark grimace.

"- He's been killed on the spot by that man who named himself Snake. I have been able to stop that criminal though. Definitely."

The dark-skinned met his father's look, confirming the death of the murderer who had done so much damage around him. But this exchange also confirmed that the first part of what he saw that night had unfortunately nothing of an illusion. He had been hoping, when he understood the explosion had been a fake one but... The man who had been in father in law only a few hours long had been able to save the ones who were now both his kids but at the cost of his life. And Kazuha, who had already lost her mother, had now only him left...

"- How is Kazuha ?

\- Shizuka has done her best ta comfort her but... It's been hard on her, with her father gone an' yer fate unknown... Support her as ya can, Heiji, she needs an' deserves it."

The detective's answer was a determinate nod.

o.O.o

Kaito hadn't reacted as he was keeping Aoko in his arms but Ran, also waiting with them in front of the ER, was the first on her feet when the doctor came out.

Heizô had called Shizuka at their home, where they were all staying after they'd been found by the staff the morning following the wedding and where they had been waiting, desperate to have some news about the boys. The officer had kept them informed about the situation and had warned them once they had been found and brought to the hospital so all had had rushed there.

The magician let reluctantly his wife go as he heard the door open, to turn at the man in white.

"- You're the relatives of the young men who arrived four hours ago ?"

"- Yes. I'm Kudô Shinichi's partner." The long haired woman declared, eager to have some news.

"- Ah, we just finished to extract the bullet, he's currently being sent to his room, you'll be able to ask for the number at the front desk.

\- How is he ?

\- We had to transfuse him so he'll probably be really feeble at the beginning but he should be as good as new after a lot of rest.

\- Great." Ran smiled, sighing with visible relief.

"- Your other friend, Hattori Heiji, is already in his room too.

\- And what about Saguru ?" Kaito worried, to see the doctor's face darken.

"- You're one of his relatives ?

\- I'm Kuroba Kaito, his best friend. We still have to call his father but I wanted to know first how he was doing..."

The doctor nodded, recognizing the name as his patient had been repeating it several times when he was treating him.

"- Your friend had a lot of puncture wounds, though none were really dangerous. We tended those quickly but, when he woke up... He has right now a hard time to differentiate what's real and what's not. He seems to believe every one he knew died and we had to sedate him since he really was agitated... Do you know anything about what could have happened there ?" The man wondered with a frown.

"- I don't know exactly, we were separated, but Saguru was captive of a specialist in hypnosis... He may have been forced to see his relatives die under that man's influence...

\- We could expect a mental traumatism then. A kind of brainwash probably..."

Kaito nodded, clenching his fists as he was starting to understand what probably happened to his friend, trapped in Spider's control, trapped in his illusions.

"- Hmm in that case, I think you should call the people he could be close to. Some family perhaps ?

\- We are very probably the closest to him... He has never really been really close to his parents but we'll warn them. He also had a caretaker, she might be able to help too...

\- I think he'll need any support you can find. It may take a long time so try not to push him too much at the beginning... And no more than two in his room.

\- OK, thank you."

Aoko and Kaito exchanged a look. Saguru had been here so many times for them... They would be here for him, as long as needed.

o.O.o

Ran, after one last sign at the couple of magicians, had been heading to Shinichi's room while they waited for Hakuba.

It was with a sad smile she entered the room after asking to the staff where he was, when she saw Shinichi looked almost as if he was sleeping. The long-haired girl settled near him, taking a chair to sit by his bed, relieved to see him alive and to know he was going to make it.

For the first time of those last two days, she relaxed and, as hypnotized by the regular dropping of the pouch leading to his arm's IV, she soon dozed off, letting herself partly rest on the detective's bed.

It wasn't long before the azure-eyed woke up and they barely miss each other by a handful of minutes. With a kind of gasp, Shinichi opened his eyes and calmed, forcing himself to stare at the ceiling, waiting for his heartbeat to settle down and for his mind to remember the last events.

That damn Rose that had been able to surprise him when he was trying to lead her away from the van for Heiji to get some help. Without looking at it, he put his hand on his stomach and felt a heavy bandage there, just where she had hurt him.

The Tokyoite sighed and finally lowered his eyes to look at his surroundings.

And then, there was no way for him to stop his heartbeat to speed up as if he was running a marathon.

She was there.

The one he thought he had forever lost.

His wide eyes finally settled for a soft expression, shining a bit, as relief overwhelmed him.

"- My love..." He said, gently stroking her hair, noticing with a little smile how similar that scene was to that time she had been watching on him, when he had been shot as Conan.

His hand still on her, he settled back in his pillow, his eyes closing again.

He was alive. And she was too. At this moment, that's all he needed to know.

* * *

o.O.o

* * *

"- Laters ! " Saguru said, throwing his blouse in a flash in his locker, rushing to grab his coat to leave the hospital as fast as possible.

He was already so late, he didn't want to lose any other second in meeting his friends, in this cold New Year's night, to look at the first sunrise of the year together at the temple. But he knew that, with his internship and the fact he was working that night, he'd have to run a bit. Well, he didn't mind, he felt more alive this way and knew they'd be all there when he'd arrive.

And it's not like he could have avoided it : being new in the service, he was prone to end with the worst days to work to. He had started his internship three months ago, after two months of rehabilitation.

After the kidnapping, Kaito and Aoko had forced him to live with them, so they could support him. The detective had been too feeble and too lost to refuse it and, he had to admit it, it had really been a good idea. The first month had just been full of nightmares, and he used to wake several times per night, often with a panicked cry, hyperventilating, and only the presence of his two friends had been able to calm him down. After a month, around his birthday, the half-brit was starting to feel a bit better, but it had taken two whole months for him to be able to say he was back to himself.

He still had sometimes some flashes of what Spider did to him or had forced him to see but he knew the man wasn't able to cause any harm any more. When, in an instant of lucidity, he had used the needle the man had put in his hand to end his own life to instead stab the killers face, he had hurt one of his eyes. And apparently it was needed for him to use his skills, since he hadn't been able to hypnotise anyone after that.

Hakuba, still running, took the last turn before the temple, glad they had chosen the closest to his job, and, after a few moments, spotted his friends.

They were indeed all here already. All couples holding hands, forming a circle to chat with each other. As her laugh echoed in the night, Saguru's eyes fell on Kazuha. The girl had a cheery face, once again, despite the fact she had been through some difficult times, with the death of her father. Like him, she had been supported, by Ran and mainly, by Hattori. The couple had finally understood that it was better to yell after each other whenever needed, just like they did as teenagers, than to keep everything for oneself and let a gap settle between them.

Heiji had a protective look at his wife, glad to see she was enjoying herself so honestly.

While he was looking at them, the blond-haired detective thought it was perhaps time to think about finding someone too... There was that nurse in the ER, she had been trying to invite him at Christmas but he had to refuse, having already an appointment with the group. But perhaps it was time to let someone enter his life. His friends' faces were so filled with happiness he was beginning to think it could be tempting.

"- Hi !" Saguru saluted, finally stepping towards the group, panting after his long run.

"- Just on time ! " Shinichi smiled as he turned to him.

"- Don't forget who you're talking to..." He smirked back, conscious of the many jokes they could have about his obsession with time.

"- Hey, look, it's starting!" Aoko said with an excited voice, pointing at the East.

They all turned to face the incoming sun, the first of the year, marking the renewal of life, the end of that year that had been filled with both pains and joys for all of them.

And, once their faces were bathed by the soft pink light, what was due to happen when Heiji and Shinichi were together, happened.

" - Kyaaa ! "

The three detectives looked at each other, their senses awoken by the kind of cry they heard already so many times in their short life, the kind that usually meant only one thing...

"- Move away, I'm a doctor ! " Hakuba announced, running in the direction of the cry.

"- Make way, detectives incoming ! " Heiji yelled, just on the blond-haired man's heels, throwing himself into the crowd with an excited grin.

Mirroring his expression, Shinichi followed him, under the girls and the magician's bored glares.

"- You damn murder-magnets… Starting the very first day of the year, give me a break… " He whined in exaggeration.

"- Maa, some things will never change..." Aoko gently smiled after she shook her head when she saw him overacting. "You can't blame them for trying to find themselves another occupation now that you're retired...

\- They could still have a break the days we're all together...

\- Remind that to the murderers." Ran pointed out with amusement.

"- Well, they're big enough ta look after themselves, no need ta spoil our day for them...

\- I totally agree with that, Kazuha" Kaito smiled, before popping a few doves from nowhere. "OK ladies, trust me in finding a way to entertain ourselves in a way implying less blood and less bodies than theirs!"

* * *

 **Aaand that's it : )**

 **So yea, sorry, I killed Kazuha's father... But the rest was very alive :p**

 **ps :** **And special 'gratz to Great who saw that one coming at chap' 21 : )**


	26. Chapter 26 - Years

**Ok, this one isn't a happy chapter and implies main char death. So if you wanted to stay with a "and they lived happily after" stop right there, chapter 25 was enough for that :p**

 **BUT I think there had to be a conclusion about the fact Kaito was immortal so there it is : )**

 **Once again, thank you all readers, reviewers, favouriters, followers for your support ! :D Thanks once again to Opal Spirit for being my Guinea pig on that fic^^**

 **And see you soon next fic ! : ) I'll be back to DC universe, it'll be more mystery oriented and very probably less dark xD** **I hope I'll be able to publish something within the week, I usually have more material when I start publishing but I also don't like to have you all wait too long between two fics soooo... I'll do my best ! : )**

 **PS : I'll answer to the guests reviews at the end of that chapter (and PM the others, as always for the last chap : ) )**

 **o.O.o**

 **emmahoshi : No worries, I just hope it is more understandable to you now that you know it wasn't her : ) Yea, I prefer happy ends to be honest so here it was ! ^^ Oh dear, you're ok?! Asking about Saguru ?! xD Nah, he won't be mentally instable. I wanted him to take a bit o time to be better after everything that happened but no, now, he's turned towards his future and alright : ) Haha, yea, an ending without a corpse wouldn't have been DC ending xD Aaaand here is the epilogue, a bit darker but I think it could be a suitable conclusion. Anytime, glad to have entertained you and see you next fic, I hope ! : )**

 **Anilover : Thank you.. I guess ? ^^ Eh, Shinichi and Heiji got to live up to their reputations xD And yes, since Saguru was the only one single, I wanted to show it was by choice, not because he was too weird for any girl to be interested in him... Time for him to experiment, now that his friends convinced him :p Oh, don't worry, it's already on progress : ) And nah, sorry, all this MK was unusual to me so I needed to go back to DC world^^; Main will be Conan and Heiji and Kaito will appear a bit but you won't have the whole set, sorry ^^; Hmm, as you can see, the epilogue is a quite short chapter, just like in 'Alliances'. Hope you'll nevertheless find it to your taste : ) Nope, no Ai in this fic. The epilogue in Alliances describes, in my opinion, well enough what happened to her : ) Yea, gratz for your longer review ! xD**

 **DaLantis : Thanks ! :D**

 **JarayZ : Wow, such motivation, Kudos to you for being able to reviews all those chapters at this late hour xD I'll be answering to all here, since I erased the previous files : ) CHAP 22 : It's never too late : ) And the good news are that you had a bunch of chapters to read ! But still, hope you are doing better, food poisoning isn't fun... Yep, I had to justify him being in Osaka, right ? :p Hmm one against three with weapons isn't that easy for a Thief with the minimal equipment... ^^; ps: I really hope too ^^; Well, the idea is that Gosho is older than us so we got good chances to see the end... If he writes it one day ^^;; CHAP23 : I tried to picture it a bit, yea... The bad guys are really evil this time :p What, you were smiling ?! You're as evil as me it seems xD And that was for all the ones who said Saguru never got hurt in my fics, I guess with that he caught up with the others :p Yea, eventually... *evil laugh* ps: No worries ! : ) And I noticed you kept your word, well done ; ) CHAP24 : He will ! And yes, Spider has been neutralized and Snake, well, left us for a worst world I hope :p ps : Determination of course : ) I nevertheless feel a bit guilty to keep you up so late... Hope it wasn't that bad this morning ? ^^;;; CHAP 25 : And that was the last ! : ) So yes, at last, time for a bit of sweetness in that dark ending ^^; Lol, yea, that's it, I kill a half-main in each arc of that fic... I'm a bit mean it seems :p (don't hate me, Toyama family ... ^^;;). Haha, Heiji not running to a crime scene ? Never ^^; But well, Kaz' admitted herself she liked his face when he solved some cases so... In a twisted way, he makes her happy when he escapes to investigate, no ? ^^;; Oh, thanks : ) I liked the idea of that renewal, starting by an old good case so soon in the year : ) Ah, I'll try to make it interesting enough then ! xD**

* * *

 **Chapter 26 - Years**

* * *

Aoko's life had been long and busy. Despite the fact she and Kaito hadn't been able to have children - that had been an after-effect of Pandora, they had been happy, enjoying the pleasure each other's company, playing with their friends' descendants. Even Saguru had finally been able to settle with someone, though it had taken quite a long search, his temper being a bit complicated sometimes.

The inspector's daughter had been spending her life as Kaito's assistant on stage, enjoying his shows from where she was, walking in the most-famous theatres, after the magician stopped to hide his true skills.

The long-haired woman always laughed silently when she saw the faces of the audience, struck with startle as he performed his favourite act : popping a 20 year old face, jumping around as if he was a teenager, despite the fact he was looking more than 60 years old at the end of his career.

It made her laugh because, what the public didn't know, it was that the real trick was the fact that he looked old. He had already been good at disguising himself but, after a whole life forced to age his face, the speed he needed to change was quite inhuman.

But all good things had to end and she had been slowly getting there. A bit more than sixty years after Kaito was saved by Pandora, she was laying in what would very probably be her death-bed, at home, the gentle wind of the spring entering by the window, bringing with it from time to time a few petals of the nearby Sakura.

Her lover, disguise-less as always at home, was holding her hand, trying to keep a straight face, but she could see the sorrow in his eyes.

"- Sorry, Kaito, I guess that's the end of our journey together..." She said with a sad smile, feeling the end was near. "You'd better be happy, ok ? That's an order..."

The magician mirrored her smile, bending to kiss her and, after a moment that was too short, he felt her body relaxed, and that could only mean one thing.

He moved away, gently stroking her cheek with one hand, rumbling in his pocket to look for something with the other.

As his eyes fell on the letter he now had in the hand, he remembered. When Saguru was still alive.

The detective had given him this envelope at their 50th wedding anniversary. He was a geezer already, and it was with a shaking hand but a serious face he had held it to him.

 _"- When eternity will be too long..."_ The blond-haired had said.

Kaito had looked at him with startled eyes, unable to even hope about what could be in there.

He knew it was impossible... He had talked, after a few years, with Akako about his immortality and how to end it, if one day, he just couldn't stand it anymore. The girl had had a sad smile when she had explained him only the blood running through his veins before his transformation could have been able to end his life. Ironic, eh ? He left so much of it on that roof after Snake shot him and yet not a single drop was remaining.

The magician had nevertheless pocketed the letter, not daring to open it but keeping it. And he had it with him every day since he heard Aoko wouldn't live any much longer.

After one last look at his lover, it was with a shaking hand he opened the envelope. A red pill fell on the bed and he found a letter, with Hakuba's untidy writing.

 _"The Kaitou Kid will stay immortal in the memories but does Kuroba Kaito really need also to be ? I'm afraid - don't even think about repeating it to him if he's still alive by the time you open this envelope - that I must agree to Heiji-kun on that point :_ "Life is limited, that's why it's so precious. Since there's a limit, we try our best to live" _. That night, before we had you drink Pandora's Tear, Akako-kun explained me the risks... Of what would be an endless life for you. And how to stop it. I took some of your blood when we were in that hotel room, while Akako-kun was keeping you alive, and turned it into the pill I put along that letter. I_ _wasn't sure I'd have the force to give you something that could harm you so I asked her to keep that fact quiet from you but..._ _Definitively, it's better like this._

 _When eternity will be too long, old pal."_

Kaito sadly smiled after he read the letter. Saguru's death, a few years ago, had already been heartbreaking to him. But even from the Other World, he was again saving him.

"- Thank you, Saguru..."

His eyes fell once again on Aoko, resting in peace, her face relieved of any worry or pain, a small smile on her lips.

"- I can't imagine that journey without you, my love." He declared, swallowing the pill and settling against Aoko on the bed, taking her in his arms.

He soon closed his eyes, with a satisfied sigh. Anyone entering the room could have thought they were just sleeping, enjoying the gentle warmth of the spring's sunlight bathing their bed.

It was time begin another journey.

Together.

* * *

 **emmahoshi : I also like how it concludes the story but, since it was about main chars' deaths, I preferred to warn it could be seen as sad : ) Yea, it was fun to have Saguru quote Heiji, when they started on such bad terms, to show the improvement of their relationship after the years ^^ Haha, I think I was also trying to find a way to love him, as, when I'm fond of Heiji, Shin and Kaito (in that respective order :p), Saguru was quite a bit further in my fav' list... I think I started to like him through MK, after a few chapters and a few eps, when he starts to help Kaito in his kind of twisted way, but it wasn't long ago compared to the others xD Is that a real question ? :p Of course Hattori will be in, he's my fav' char, I can't picture myself writing a story without him at all o.O And since DC FF is all about KaiShin nowadays, the readers need to have a bit more of Heiji in their reading life xD No problem, it was so fun for me also : ) Thanks for all the reviews, I had really much fun with your comments ^_^**


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